


that's fashion, baby!

by hyucksdream



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fashion & Models, Alternate Universe - Photographer, Breakfast in Bed, Childhood Friends, Drunk confessions, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Enemies to Lovers, Fluff, Little bit of angst, Long-Distance Relationship, M/M, Only for a tiny bit, Photographer!Mark, Photography, Sharing a Bed, Soft Lee Donghyuck | Haechan/Mark Lee, markhyuck hate each other, model!hyuck, ot21 all make an appearance tho its small, some are only mentioned
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-29
Updated: 2019-03-31
Packaged: 2019-10-18 15:02:03
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 40,114
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17583068
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hyucksdream/pseuds/hyucksdream
Summary: Mark has two goals for his year: chase his photography dreams and get closer to his friends. And maybe go back to Canada.But when a new model from Mark's past whirlwinds into his life and uproots his dreams, interferes with his job, and infuriates Mark with every fiber in his being, he's forced to rethink what his dream really is.(or, the one where mark and donghyuck hated each other in high school and were so glad to get away from each other. but wait. donghyuck joins mark's company as a model and mark is his photographer)





	1. chapter one

Mark watched as his coffee tumbled to the floor, a look of pure distaste taking over his face as his latte spilled all over the cement.

“Shit,” he muttered and hopped back, grabbing his camera bag before it got wet.

“Seriously, Mark? Did you really just spill your coffee outside of the damn coffee shop?” Jeno rolled his eyes and picked up Mark’s now-empty coffee cup, gesturing to the Starbucks they had just walked out of.

“Fuck,” Mark groaned, looking up at the sky as if the gods themselves had decided to ruin Mark’s day. “I can already tell that today’s gonna be horrible.”

“Chin up, Markie Mark. At least it’s Friday!” Jeno slung an arm around Mark’s shoulders, guiding him down the sidewalk, awfully preppy for a morning this early, the sun still not out, pitch black sky coating the atmosphere.

“I have to meet a new client today. And it’s fucking _ 6 in the morning _ . Why would I be out of my apartment this early?” Mark complained, staring up at the still dark sky. “Sometimes I hate working for NCT, but they always pay me really well.”

“I’m sure it won’t be that bad. You know most of the models. And the new client will probably be a sweetheart as well. Renjun doesn’t stop talking about him,” Jeno assured Mark, stifling a light yawn as the wind ruffled his brown hair.

“Do you ever miss modeling for NCT? You were a big part of Dream,” Mark asked, not meeting Jeno’s eyes.

Jeno sighed, contemplating the question. “Sometimes. I really miss everyone in Dream. I love Renjun, Jisung, and Lele, but if I hadn’t left, I never would’ve met Jaemin. In the end, everything will work out if I keep working hard. I like the change too.”

Mark nodded; he wished he had such a positive outlook on everything. Working as a freelance photographer was different, though. Luckily, NCT usually asked him to do their Dream shoots, which Mark appreciated. NCT paid really well, and everyone was easy to work with. NCT was a stable gig for him that he loved. It was satisfactory, and the friendships he had gotten out of it had made him value the job further. 

“Call me after work, okay? Your shoot should be over by noon, right? So you, me, and Yukhei can get some lunch?” Jeno asked as they approached the giant NCT building. 

“Yeah, I’ll call you. I think Yukhei’s doing a shoot for the new clothing line somewhere downtown, but I think that’s later in the day,” Mark said and Jeno nodded, whispering a good luck wish with a light pat on the older’s back. 

Mark and Jeno said their goodbyes and Mark headed inside the familiar building, making his way over to the back, greeting the tired receptionist as he made his way in.

“Mark! It’s so good to see you again!” the shoot director greeted him warmly. She was always a joy to be around, and she made his life a whole lot easier.    
“Hey, Jisoo, ready for the shoot? Got everyone in order?” Mark joked, knowing that Jisoo had everything beyond ready. She had a protocol for every possible situation and had at least 3 checklists on her clipboard at all times. She was the sole reason NCT was a working company.

“About that, today’s shoot is going to be a little different. You’re going to be shooting the newly recruited member of Dream, but just his individual shots. We’re doing different concepts for each individual so today’s shoot is just for Haechan. Is that okay with you?” Jisoo explained, flipping back through a few pages clipped to her clipboard. 

Mark nodded. “Yeah, that sounds fine. Haechan’s concept is the sun, right? That’s why we’re doing a sunrise shoot?”

Jisoo beamed at him as she started describing the newest model. “Yes! Haechan is really the sweetest boy ever! You’ll love him! He’s so funny but so good at his job. He’s really going to be the next big model from NCT. I can feel it. He’ll charm the shoes off of you!”

The way Jisoo was gushing about Haechan really set some high expectations for Mark. He was curious to see this apparently very talented boy.

“Anyways, I’ll let you get set up. Shoot should start in about 20 minutes?” Jisoo checked her watch, nodding to herself, before she backed away, letting Mark get to work.

He headed out to the back of the building. NCT’s building overlooked Han River, where today’s early morning shoot was taking place. Usually, Mark wasn’t alone when doing shoots for NCT, but he was just doing an individual shoot today, so there wasn’t really a need for more photographers, which he liked. He could really get in the zone and focus on his own photos when he was doing a shoot by himself. Theoretically, he was in control.

As Mark set up his equipment, appreciating the fact that he didn’t need to set much up in terms of lighting. The first peeks of light were starting to shine, illuminating the river, sending shimmers across the slight ripples in the water. 

“Mark, I’d like for you to meet Haechan, our newest model for NCT. He’s quite talented; I’m not sure how he wasn’t scouted before, but we really got ourselves a catch here,” Jisoo introduced from behind him as Mark carefully put his lens on his camera. 

Mark turned, a welcoming smile shining on his face as he faced his newest client. “Nice to meet you, Haechan, I’m-”

The smile dropped off of Mark’s face as he realized exactly who he was standing in front of. He looked the same, the same sun kissed skin, fluffy head of hair, though now it was dyed light brown instead of the fiery red it had been during high school, and his face. Wow. Mark knew exactly why NCT had scouted him for their modeling company.

An unpleasant feeling arose from deep within him, having been suffocated throughout the years they hadn’t seen each other. 

The baby fat that Mark made fun of him relentlessly for in high school had melted away, his jawline was strong and eyes just as big as ever. Mark still hated him, he thought as Haechan - no, Donghyuck stared at him, a look of shock spread on his face as well, before morphing into a mask of indifference politeness. 

“Mark? You alright?” Jisoo waved a hand in front of his face, and a questioning glance was thrown his way. 

“I-Yeah. Yeah, I’m good. It’s nice to meet you, Haechan,” Mark forced himself to say, plastering the strongest smile he could, hoping Jisoo would buy it. The name felt weird in his mouth.

The aforementioned boy just stared at Mark, an unreadable look on his face. Mark winced, he had been right before when he was talking to Jeno, today was going to be a horrible day.

 

*

 

“Okay, I just need a few more, hold your jacket up for me,” Mark instructed, eyes focused on his viewfinder as he manually adjusted the exposure. 

“Alright, I think we’re good,” Mark inspected the photos, appreciating the way he had caught the beautiful sunrise reflecting in the water.  _ If only the ugly model hadn’t been in the way, it would’ve been a perfect photo _ , Mark thought to himself. 

“Are we done?” Donghyuck asked, staring at Mark with an expectant look on his face. 

“Yes, we’re done,” Mark said coldly, not looking up from his camera. 

Donghyuck sighed and walked back towards the building. Mark couldn’t believe his luck. Of course, he had to meet Donghyuck again. Sure, he had grown up and changed names, but here they were again, fully grown adults, working together. 

Mark had no idea that Donghyuck still lived in Seoul. Sure, in high school, Mark was the one who had wanted to leave Seoul as soon as possible, but Donghyuck never really liked their small suburban town just outside Seoul either. Mark knew that Donghyuck thought that he belonged somewhere more high-profile, like LA or New York City or London. He had never shut up about it during high school.

And Mark had always wanted to go back to Canada after high school, which was exactly what he had done. But he had found himself right back in Seoul after a few years, with a degree in the Arts and a passion for photography. 

Mark quickly disassembled his camera and other equipment, gently packing them in his bag before heading back inside. He had another shoot with the rest of the Dream members scheduled for later this week but after running into Donghyuck, he wanted to run in the other direction and never come back. Donghyuck got on every single one of his nerves, making his blood boil. Donghyuck was so stuck up, and clearly, he hadn’t changed a single bit since high school, judging from the way he had been treating Mark the whole morning. 

Sighing, Mark waved to Jisoo before heading back out through the front entrance, grabbing his phone to tell Jeno about the rest of his horrible morning. 

As Mark walked through the familiar streets of Seoul, he couldn’t stop thinking of his old classmate, and before that, his friend. 

At one point in time, it was true, he and Donghyuck had been pretty good friends. It only took a single person to ruin their entire friendship. But it didn’t matter. Mark would get through this last shoot with the rest of the Dream members that he adored, and he’d ignore Donghyuck. He wouldn’t let Donghyuck get under his skin. After that, he’d figure something else out. They were both grown adults now, they couldn’t let things from high school affect them now. At least Mark wouldn’t. He was more mature than that. 

As Mark spotted the familiar noodle cafe, he let out a sigh of relief. He still had the whole day to do whatever he wanted. That was the best part about early morning shoots. He didn’t have anything else scheduled so he could go see Jeno’s shoot, or he could spend the day by himself, or even hang out with Yukhei if he wanted.

The restaurant was warm as he entered from the cold winter breeze, the warm blast of heat heating up his insides. He spotted Jeno and Yukhei sitting in a booth in the back, near the cozy fireplace. Mark made his way over, feeling his stomach rumble. Skipping his morning coffee had ruined his morning, and dealing with his newest client didn’t make it easier either, leaving him very hungry, but seeing his friends brightened his mood a little. 

“Mark hyung! How was your shoot?” Jeno asked, a smile forming on his face as he saw Mark plop into the booth next to Yukhei. “How was your new client?”

“I don’t wanna talk about it,” Mark muttered. “Can we get food then talk?”

“Okay, Mr. Impatient. Why are you in a bad mood?” Yukhei asked, raising his eyebrows suggestively. “Did you maybe work with someone who you found strangely attractive and now you’re in a bad mood because you know that you’ll never be able to be with them?”

Mark just stared at Yukhei. “What the fuck, Yukhei.”

“That was strangely specific,” Jeno leaned forward, closer to Yukhei. “Did you, by any chance, work with someone whom you found strangely attractive but realized you could never be with them? Maybe that guy you were gushing about a few days ago? What was his name? Junseok? Junghoon?”

“Jungwoo!” Mark said, leaning back when Yukhei’s face snapped to his own, knowing he got it right. 

“No? What the fuck,” Yukhei looked everywhere but Jeno and Mark’s eyes, giving himself away. Jeno grinned before turning back to Mark.

“Can we eat, I’m starving,” Mark groaned, changing the subject easily, and Jeno huffed. 

“Okay, okay, let’s go,” Jeno stood, waiting for his friends to accompany him before they made their way over to the counter. 

When the got to the counter, they ordered quickly, the delicious aroma of Mark’s favorite noodles filling his nose. 

Once they got their food, they dug in, all three of them hungry from their various activities. All the bad thoughts from the morning faded as Mark focused on his food. There was nothing a good bowl of jjajangmyeon couldn’t fix. It was his go-to comfort food for a reason.

“Jesus, Mark, how hungry were you?” Jeno asked once Mark finished, only half of Jeno’s bowl gone. 

Mark just shrugged. Jjajangmyeon was his favorite food, it always had been, and after his encounter with Donghyuck this morning, he needed a refresher. He felt a lot better now anyway. 

“Mark! Jeno! Yukhei!” a voice called from the other end of the small shop. 

Mark turned to look, only to see a familiar short, dark-haired boy. “Renjun!” Jeno called out excitedly, his face morphing into one of pure giddiness. The shorter boy’s face mirrored Jeno’s, a big smile spreading across his face as he walked over. 

Mark smiled too, lifting his hand to wave, only to stop mid-air as his eyes settled on the figure behind Renjun. Following Renjun was the boy who had been plaguing Mark’s mind all morning; the reason he had inhaled his jjajangmyeon to get his mind off of him. 

Donghyuck’s face was equally shocked, his eyes widening before his face turned to distaste. Mark scoffed and turned back around to face Jeno, who was shooting Mark a questioning look. Renjun looked equally as confused, turning to look at Donghyuck and back again at Mark. Yukhei broke the silence, shouting a quick hello to Renjun and introducing himself to Donghyuck. 

“Here, come sit!” Jeno offered, scooting over, making room for Renjun and Donghyuck to slide in. Renjun took a seat next to Jeno, leaving Donghyuck to scoot in with Mark. Mark pursed his lips before making space for Donghyuck to take a seat next to him, leaving him sandwiched in between Yukhei and Donghyuck.

“So, how did your shoot go this morning?” Renjun asked, “Isn’t Donghyuck the sweetest?”

Mark wanted to laugh, there was no way Donghyuck could ever be sweet. He didn’t know how Renjun couldn’t see through the obvious facade, but he made a mental note to warn him later. Renjun didn’t need someone as stuck up and fake in his life as Donghyuck was.  

Instead, he just plastered a smile on his face and nodded. “The shoot was fine. The weather was great though!”

Renjun shot him a confused look since he knew that Mark usually sounded more excited about his shoots but Mark couldn’t worry about that now. He subtly shook his head, to which Renjun’s eyebrows furrowed, but he nodded anyway, dropping it for the time being. 

Donghyuck shifted further away from Mark, causing Mark to smile even more superficially. Leave it to Lee Donghyuck to ruin his entire day. 

The rest of lunch went smoothly, albeit a bit strained and awkward. Jeno, Renjun, and Yukhei started talking about a different shoot that was coming up soon. Donghyuck stayed silent for the most part, probably too wrapped up in himself to think about anyone else. Mark chipped in whenever he could, offering his opinions on the various pieces the boys were modeling. 

“See you on Friday for the Dream shoot?” Renjun asked Mark, and he nodded. 

“Yeah! Take care, okay?” Mark said as they stood, walking out into the freezing street. 

“You too, Mark. Bye, Jeno. Text me, okay? I want to meet this Jaemin guy,” he replied, a twinkle in his eye as he looked at Jeno. 

Jeno grinned and nodded, wishing Renjun a good rest of his day. 

Mark, Jeno, and Yukhei said their goodbyes to Donghyuck and headed their own way, back towards their apartments. 

“Okay, what’s the deal with you and Donghyuck? He’s one of the most talented models in the industry. You know he’s had his designs considered for a Prada shoot? And he has his own clothing line as a side business?” Jeno asked, eyes wide as he studied Mark with a curious look on his face, as soon as they were out of earshot of the other boys.

“His clothing line is giant, though. He’s only 23 and already known worldwide for his cruelty-free, environmentally friendly clothes. It’s on pause right now because he’s focusing on modeling, but he’s so talented,” Yukhei added with a sigh and Mark could practically see the hearts in his best friends’ eyes. 

“He’s not as amazing as he sounds,” Mark scoffed. “Remember that guy I told you about? In high school, I was dating this girl and broke up with her because I didn’t want a long distance relationship when I went to study in Canada?”

“Yeah, and one of her friends started hating on you and you guys hated each other throughout high school. You complain about that guy every time anyone brings up high school,” Jeno recalled, then looked expectantly at Mark.

Mark looked down as Yukhei and Jeno connected the dots, their eyes simultaneously widening in shock. 

“Wait, no. That guy was Donghyuck? You and Donghyuck hated each other in high school?” Yukhei realized, stopping in the middle of the street and staring at Mark like he was crazy. 

“You knew  _ the _ Lee Donghyuck in high school and didn’t think to mention it to us?” Jeno sounded awed, and Mark didn’t really understand why. 

Mark chuckled bitterly before muttering, “I thought I had seen the last of him after we graduated. What a coincidence it is that we’re both still in Seoul. Both of us wanted to leave so bad in high school.”

“You guys can have a fresh start now, though,” Jeno suggested. “Both of you are mature and have grown up now.”

“He’s still the same, stuck-up boy he always was. He just has more money and influence now,” Mark grumbled, kicking a rock in the road as he continued to walk. 

“It’s okay, Mark. Just be the bigger man,” Yukhei grinned and clapped Mark’s back, sending him stumbling forward a few steps. 

“I guess I’ll have to be,” he sighed, looking down at his camera bag that had the SD card with the of photos of Donghyuck from the shoot on it.

 

*

 

When Mark was sitting at his desk, his laptop full of photos of Donghyuck, he really didn’t feel like being the bigger man. He was so sick of seeing Donghyuck everywhere. He always felt a little weird around Donghyuck, like he was sick of him, but at the same time, there was a small part of him who also wanted to be his friend. It confused him to no end. 

He guessed it was from when they were friends because if Mark remembered correctly, Donghyuck was a good friend to have. But Mark was sure that he didn’t want to be friends with Donghyuck again.  Acquaintances were just fine with Mark.

Right now, though, Mark wanted to slam his head against a wall and never see a photo of Donghyuck standing in front of the sunrise again. 

The photos themselves had turned out great. Mark wasn’t surprised about that; taking photos of nature was his specialty, so the sunrise wasn’t a problem. They had shot for the whole hour that the sun was in the process of rising, so there were various colors splayed across the sky, creating a beautiful canvas. That wasn’t the problem, though. 

The problem, the bane of Mark’s existence, the last straw, the match in the powder barrel, was the fact that Donghyuck’s foundation didn’t match the rest of his exposed skin, and the fact that the sun caused the rest of his body to glow was frustrating Mark beyond expression. 

Donghyuck had so much money, couldn’t he afford a foundation that actually matched his skin tone? The logical part of Mark’s brain reminded him that Donghyuck didn’t do his own makeup for shoots, but Mark ignored that area of his brain, instead opting to grumble expletives and insults underneath his breath as he continued to edit. 

Mark had been working on editing the same set of photos for almost an hour now. If he changed Donghyuck’s face color, he looked too orange in the sun, and if he lightened the rest of his body, Donghyuck looked out of place and it ruined the overall aesthetic of the photo. Besides, seeing Donghyuck pale as a ghost was weird. He looked much better with his tanned honey skin. Not that Mark was thinking about it.

Mark drained the rest of his beer and ran a hand through his hair. He was over seeing Donghyuck everywhere. He just wanted to stop thinking about him. 

So Mark spent another fifteen minutes messing with one specific photo, changing the exposure and fixing blemishes and doing everything he could except facing the actual problem before he stood up, stretched his muscles, and called Johnny.

“Hey, Johnny. Are you free right now?” Mark asked, slamming his laptop shut (but not before saving the photos), and stood up, getting dressed with one hand. 

“I’m actually at a club right now. Do you wanna come? You sound stressed,” Mark could hear the concern in the older boy’s voice and nothing made him feel more comforted. He could also hear loud party music blasting on Johnny’s end and he wanted nothing more than to get out of his apartment. 

He had edited a good chunk of photos today. And all he really wanted to do was have a few hours to himself without thinking about Donghyuck. Which he’d done too much of today, anyway.  

“Just trying to edit a set of photos,” Mark mumbled while looking for his keys. “What club are you at and who are you with?”

Mark heard some quiet murmuring before the background music faded, and Mark could actually hear Johnny talking. “The one by the ice cream shop you like? And I’m with Ten and Taeyong, Doyoung, and Jaehyun. We ran into Yuta and Sicheng here too.”

Mark finally found his keys and grabbed his wallet before leaving his apartment, leaving Donghyuck and all his worries sitting on his laptop on his desk, ready to forget all about the disaster that was today. 

When Mark got to the club, he was feeling pretty excited. He had even convinced Jeno and Yukhei to come, and though Yukhei sounded a little unsure, he had agreed. Mark was confused, Yukhei usually loved going to clubs, but Mark brushed it off. 

He hadn’t hung out with Johnny and Ten and the rest of that gang as much as he would’ve liked since they all graduated from university. Everyone was busy with their own things and most of them didn’t have time to hang out, so it made the times they did get to see each other that much sweeter.

The club was loud and pretty crowded for a Wednesday night. He found his friends easily, the large group of men gathered at the bar, egging someone - probably Yuta - on to continue downing shots.

“Mark! Long time no see!” Ten noticed him first, beckoning him over eagerly. 

“Hey, Ten. How’s everything going?” Mark asked, the older boy throwing an arm around his shoulder, bringing a blanket of comfort over the younger. He had really missed his friends. 

Ten just shrugged, a smile still adorning his face, though his eyes lost a bit of sparkle. “It’s going, you know? Adult life is still hard to get used to, even 3 years after graduating from college.”

Mark just nodded, he knew how confusing life was. Especially with Ten’s career as a dancer. Some days were better than others. Ten just tipped his glass back, clapping Mark on the back.

“Mark Lee, my man,” Johnny greeted, his words slightly slurred as he came up behind Ten. “You look even more stressed in real life. What’s going on?”

Mark took a seat at the bar, knowing that confiding in Johnny was really his best bet. The older boy never failed to make him feel better. 

So he drowned out the music in the background, ignoring the random brush of people every so often when their dancing got too close to the bar. 

“You remember Donghyuck from high school? You were a senior when we were freshmen, but he was pretty active in school for a freshman,” Mark asked, looking up expectantly at the older. Johnny had gone to the same high school and university as the both of them, so it wouldn’t be a stretch for Johnny to have heard or even met Donghyuck.

“Isn’t he a model or something? His name is always trending on Twitter. Man, he was tiny back in high school,” Johnny shook his head in amusement. 

“So you know how we hated each other when we were in school?” when Johnny nodded, Mark continued on, “Well, I was doing a shoot for the Dream members and Donghyuck’s apparently a new member of Dream. And our shoot was so awkward this morning, and he still knows how to get on my nerves and he’s so stuck up! Then I saw him at lunch too, and then I was editing photos of him, and I really thought I was free from him. Right when things were starting to go well, of course, something had to mess it up.”

Mark let his head thump on the counter in front of him, and he felt Ten soothingly rub his back as he talked to Taeyong. Johnny ordered him a drink and focused on him again, sending him a comforting glance.

The frazzled boy took a big gulp of the beer, appreciating the way it burned as it went down his throat. “I want to be the bigger person but I really just wish we didn’t work together. It’s so fucking weird and I wish we hadn’t seen each other again.”

Johnny nodded, leaning closer. “Leave the past in the past. You guys are both grown up, successful men. Don’t let him get to you. Even if you don’t want to be the bigger person, maybe you should think about why you guys hate each other in the first place. I’m sure it’s something that can be resolved. This is the perfect opportunity to hit the reset button and become friends.”

Mark took another sip and dropped his head down again. He hated that Johnny was right. 

He just wanted to wallow in his sad thoughts. He was just getting started. His photography career was just taking off. He had just started making new friends and really grasping the adult life. Things were starting to go the right way for him. He didn’t need something so trivial like a high school archenemy showing up and ruining everything. 

“Okay,” he said out loud to no one in particular. “I’ll pity myself tonight and get my shit together tomorrow.”

The bartender shot him a look of pity and he just knew that he was making the wrong decision. He tossed back the rest of his beer before heading over to the dance floor. 

 

*

 

4 drinks, 15 upbeat songs and a lot of bad dance moves later, Mark’s hair was plastered to his forehead and his body was starting to complain, though his blood was pumping through his veins, pushing him to keep going, to de-stress, to get his mind off things. 

He was currently located in the middle of Ten and Taeyong, the three of them in the middle of the large mob. Jaehyun and Johnny were nowhere to be found, and Yuta and Sicheng were most likely cuddling in a dark corner. 

“Mark,” Ten shouted in his ear, the bass of the music causing the floor to vibrate under their feet. “I don’t wanna rain on your parade or anything, but isn’t that Donghyuck?”

“What?” Mark yelled, not knowing if he had heard the dancer correctly, stopping his jumping and turning to face Ten. 

“Look, over there, that looks a lot like Donghyuck,” Ten pointed out and Mark followed his eyes right to . . . oh. 

Donghyuck was dressed in all black, but his freshly dyed bright red hair stood out, along with his tanned skin that Mark would be able to recognize from anywhere. Donghyuck was with some people Mark didn’t recognize, and he squinted just to make sure it was Donghyuck and not someone else.

As the song ended and another, equally as upbeat song played, Donghyuck raised his gaze over in Mark’s general vicinity, his slightly glassed eyes landing on Mark’s before his mouth dropped open. Mark still stared, not moving, as he watched Donghyuck mouth something to his friends and started making his way over to Mark. 

He was drunk, for sure. His steps were unstable as he pushed his way through the dance floor, stopping once he reached right in front of Mark, his head tilting up just the tiniest bit so they could maintain eye contact. 

Mark looked at Ten and Taeyong, who were slowly backing away and maybe it was the alcohol clouding his mind, but he appreciated the privacy. 

He knew that he hadn’t wanted to even think about the model just a few minutes ago, but strangely, seeing Donghyuck didn’t bring any annoyance up in Mark. 

Donghyuck’s eyes were wide and his face was flushed, floppy hair resting against his tanned skin, a thin sheen of sweat coating his forehead, mirroring the one on Mark’s. The first word that came to Mark’s mind when he looked at the younger was cute, a stark difference from the insults Mark had been thinking in his apartment only two hours ago. 

“Hi,” Donghyuck said, a smile spreading across his face, a giggle erupting from him a second later.

“Hi,” Mark replied, a smile of his own spreading across his face.

“I’m thirsty,” Donghyuck complained with a burp and Mark just watched the younger.

He had never really had the chance to see the younger so unfiltered, and it was one of the few times Mark had ever seen Donghyuck smile without malice and actually being directed at him. It was a nice change, though Donghyuck still infuriated Mark. 

“Me too,” he just said and they walked over to the bar, Hyuck slightly leaning on the older. 

They got themselves some drinks and took a seat next to each other, Donghyuck swinging on his barstool to face Mark, a strangely solemn look displayed on his face. 

“Isn’t it crazy that we found each other again after all these years. I really thought you left Korea,” Donghyuck mumbled, staring into his cup.

“I did,” Mark said. “But I came back. There’s something about this place I don’t want to leave.”

Donghyuck sighed. “You’re doing so well, Mark.”

Mark scoffed, not knowing when he had decided to bare all his thoughts for Donghyuck to hear, but he didn’t like the way Donghyuck was feeling so down about himself. 

“You’re doing better, Donghyuck. I wish I was as happy as you. I wish I was living my dream.”

Mark really didn’t know what he was trying to accomplish. Donghyuck drove him crazy, he was annoying, knew exactly what buttons to push to get a rise out of Mark, and never backed down from an opportunity to insult Mark, but here he was. Reassuring Donghyuck that he was doing well in life. 

“Shut up, Mark,” the tipsy model punched Mark’s shoulder. “You always do this. You always try to reach for bigger things while forgetting the things that you have right in front of you. You really hurt Soojin, you know. She sat in my room and cried for hours every day the week you left. She loved you and you threw it away,” Donghyuck looked at Mark, his eyes suddenly seeming less glassy and red, more aware, as his piercing brown eyes bored into his own. 

Mark shook his head, looking down. “You know I didn’t want to hurt her. You know I loved her too. You know how happy she made me. You also know that we were holding each other back. She wanted to travel the world with her friends and our relationship problems would’ve stopped her from living her life to the fullest. It wasn’t the right time for us.”

Again, he didn’t know why he was even explaining this to Donghyuck, why he even wanted him to know, but he had given himself tonight to be a pitiful mess. That was exactly what he was doing and he felt less than great about it. 

Donghyuck just nodded and stuck a finger in his glass, twirling it in the drink, his head laying on the other arm he had propped on the table, then barely audible, “You’re lucky you’re so talented at what you do.”

“You know you’re talented too, Donghyuck,” Mark said. He really didn’t know when they became so close, but at one point in high school, they were almost best friends. Mark still had never found anyone else who made him feel the way that Donghyuck did. 

Deep down, Donghyuck was a good person and Mark knew it. It was just easier to hate him than have the guilt of disappointing him weighing down on Mark. Besides, there were layers and layers of hate built with heavy steel, and it would take more than just a single friendly conversation between the two drunk men to bring them down. 

“Why do we hate each other? I forgot. Also, is this a dream? This is the third time I’ve seen you in one day, and that only happens in dreams,” Donghyuck giggled before downing the rest of his drink, successfully lowering Mark’s inhibitions again. 

Mark shrugged, finishing his own drink. “I don’t know, Donghyuck. You started hating me first. Then you just became the most stuck up person ever and I couldn’t stop myself from hating you.”

“I don’t hate you, Mark,” Donghyuck admitted, peeking out from the rim of his cup, somewhat sadly. It seemed like a rain cloud had just appeared above both boys’ heads, drenching them in rain and freezing them to the core. The air between them shifted, moving towards tense, and it was all Mark could do to stay seated. Donghyuck’s words were an eye-opener, of sorts. An unfortunate, awkward, eye-opener, but it was needed.  

“I should go,” Mark stood and peered around the dark club for his friends, only to have his wrist pulled back by Donghyuck. His hand was warm, but not sweaty, and Mark’s wrist was tingling where the younger’s fingers were clutching it. Mark turned expectantly, only to see Donghyuck’s big eyes staring into his own. The younger looked drunk again, the little semblance of sobriety gone.

“Are you gonna quit doing shoots for Dream now that I joined?” Donghyuck asked quietly, still sitting. The dim lights were shining just right on Donghyuck’s face, making it look like he had tears in his eyes. Mark allowed himself to push a stray piece of red hair out of the younger’s face, before pulling away. 

He sucked in a breath. He had no reason to do that. Why did he do that? Donghyuck’s eyes widened, looking from Mark’s hand to his eyes repeatedly before he realized his own hand gripping Mark’s wrist. He quickly pulled his hand back, and Mark let his own arm recede to his side. 

He shook his head, breaking eye contact and instead examined his shoes. “Good night, Donghyuck.”

 

When he got home that night, still drunk, but spirits lifted, he sat down at his desk and edited his photos until he fell asleep, face smushed on the keyboard, thoughts of a pretty red-haired boy running through his mind.

 

*


	2. chapter two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> mark still hates donghyuck!

When Mark awoke and checked the clock, he realized that he had horribly overslept by an hour and that he was supposed to be out of his house by . . . well, now. He jumped out of his chair only to groan in pain as his neck started aching. Mark knew his morning wasn’t going to go well, judging from the painful throb in his head paired with the soreness in his body. 

He hastily tossed on some clean clothes, ran a hand through his hair, brushed his teeth in record time, grabbed a few advils and headed on his way. 

“Good morning, Mark! Could we talk for just a few seconds?” Jisoo greeted as he walked into the building, placing a soft, but firm hand on Mark’s arm, successfully detouring him from his usual walk to the back of the building where the Dream shoots were held, pulling him into her office.

Jisoo’s voice was cheery as usual, but it didn’t stop Mark’s mind from automatically assuming the worst. Maybe she had found out that Mark had gotten drunk last night instead of working on the photos. Of course, that wasn’t any of Jisoo’s concern, but Mark had no idea what Jisoo wanted to talk about. Maybe she had found out about Mark and Donghyuck’s past and decided that they couldn’t work together anymore. Which wasn’t a decision Mark would object to. 

With shaking hands, Mark pulled a chair out from under the table and took a seat, looking at Jisoo who had taken a seat across from him. 

“Are you feeling alright, Mark? You look a little worried,” Jisoo asked, a small frown forming on her face.

Mark snapped out of his thoughts and nodded, clasping his hands together, looking at Jisoo intently. “I’m great!”

“Okay, then. Well, I just wanted to ask if you were available for a few more shoots? The designer added a few more last minute pieces and we wanted to launch them all together instead of waiting. So, if you’re available, we’d love to have you shoot those pieces too,” Jisoo explained, and Mark released a relieved breath. So it didn’t have anything to do with Donghyuck. 

“Yeah, I’d love to do more shoots! You know I love the Dream members,” Mark smiled. He had no reason not to accept the offer. His next shoot was next week, so he had time this week.

“That’s perfect! Thanks, Mark, you’re a lifesaver,” Jisoo grinned and sent Mark a wave as he headed out for a meeting for one of the shoots.

 

*

 

Even as Mark edited his photos for a different shoot, one that he needed to send the photos back soon for, Donghyuck kept capturing his thoughts, plaguing his mind, a faint smell of beer and sweat making its way to Mark, confusing him more than he thought was normal. 

Mark didn’t remember much from the night before, he knew that he had been dancing with Taeyong and Ten for a good portion of the night, but after that, most of the night was lost on him. 

For some reason, though, Mark thought that he had had a civilized conversation with Donghyuck, no name-calling or fiery insults. It was a weird thought, and Mark couldn’t distinguish whether it was real or if he’d dreamed up an alternate universe while he was sleeping. The latter seemed much more likely, but it had felt too real for Mark to just brush off. 

Mark didn’t really know why he had thought that going out and drinking on a Wednesday night was a good idea, but what was done was done and now he had to suffer through a hangover and the increasingly confusing thoughts plaguing his mind.

He knew that it was likely that he would get drunk tonight, too. 

Renjun had invited their friend group to get dinner and then hang out at his apartment, which honestly never ended well. In the past, the night had ended with Renjun and Jeno either cuddling or fighting, no in between. The two of them were weird with their feelings. No one else in their group could figure it out. Chenle and Jisung were usually normal, since Chenle didn’t like drinking, and Jisung felt like he needed to support his friend by also staying sober, but Chenle and Jisung always had some weird things going on anyway. They didn’t need a single drop of alcohol to act like crackheads. 

Honestly, Mark needed another distraction. His next shoot was next week, and all he could think about was Donghyuck. For someone Mark seemed to hate, Donghyuck was on Mark’s mind a whole lot. 

He sipped at his coffee before focusing on his photos again. This set of photos were of another individual modeling shoot, for a different branch of NCT. 

“Mark? What are you doing here?” Mark looked up to see Donghyuck, coffee in hand, staring at him weirdly. Mark had been at this cafe for at least an hour already, editing and editing and editing. 

Mark scrunched his eyebrows together. What did Donghyuck even mean? He felt the intense feeling of annoyance rise up in him, what right did Donghyuck have to storm in and accuse him of whatever he was trying to accuse him of?

“Trying to edit my photos. What else would I be doing?” Mark tried to keep his voice down, though it came out a lot snappier than he had meant, already getting fired up before there was anything to get fired up about.

“I don’t know, it just seems like you’re following me. First, we show up at the same shoot, which can’t be helped, but then we saw each other at the same jjajangmyeon place for lunch, then at the same club last night, and now we’re here at the same coffee shop. That’s a little weird, don’t you think? Especially since we haven’t seen each other in over 5 years,” Donghyuck’s tone was too condescending for Mark. 

The older was sure that whatever conversation he thought he and Donghyuck had was dreamt up. Mark scoffed, there was no way he was letting Donghyuck think that  _ he  _ was following him around. Mark wanted nothing to do with Donghyuck. He felt even more confused now that Donghyuck had confirmed that the two of them had talked at the club last night. That was just more fuel for the fire.

“First of all, I worked for NCT before you even thought of joining, I’ve been going to that club for years with my friends, that jjajangmyeon place is my favorite lunch place, and I always edit my photos at this coffee shop. Look around, Donghyuck. This whole city is full of places that I go to, because I’ve lived here longer than you. I wasn’t the one who left. You always go on and on about how I’m a terrible person for leaving, but in the end, you also left. I only studied abroad for two years, but I’ve been here for  _ years _ , Donghyuck. I can’t help that I know my way around the city,” Mark knew that what he was saying was unnecessarily rude, but he couldn’t find it in himself to care.

Donghyuck shifted his eyes down, and for a second, Mark thought that he had won. Maybe he had stooped low to Donghyuck’s level, but he had gotten his feelings out, something he finally wasn’t afraid to do. It felt good, better than it should have, but that only lasted for a second before Donghyuck opened his mouth again. 

“You may have been here longer, but that doesn’t mean you’re doing better than me. I learned in Paris that people will do anything to get ahead of you, including stabbing you in the back in a heartbeat, but that doesn’t mean they’re better than you. And in New York, I learned that I needed a hard shell to survive in the fashion industry,” Donghyuck said quietly, though each word pierced through Mark’s brain, further enraging him with every syllable uttered. Donghyuck finally looked up, locking eyes with Mark, a triumphant look glinting in his brown orbs, a small smirk playing on his lips. “So forgive me if I’m not surprised that you’re doing your best to get ahead of me.”

All Mark could see was red. 

The surrounding noise in the coffee shop faded from Mark’s mind as the only thing he could focus on was Donghyuck’s words. He felt like he had been dipped in an ice bath but simultaneously touched a burning stove. 

Mark slammed his laptop shut as his heart rate spiked. He needed to leave before he did something he would regret. Donghyuck was so, _so_ _infuriating_. It didn’t miss Mark that Donghyuck was still trying to show off his every move, always trying to prove that he was better than Mark. Some things never changed, it seemed like. Donghyuck was always trying to one-up Mark and Mark was always stuck trying to be the bigger person.

Mark grabbed his coffee and bag and shoved past Donghyuck, making sure that his shoulder knocked into Donghyuck’s, conveying all the anger he needed to let out, and for a second, he hoped that Donghyuck’s coffee spilled over onto his crisp white shirt. 

Mark sprinted two blocks over, brushing past all the other people on the busy street, until he had broken into a cold sweat from running so fast. The whole while, he did his best to take deep breaths, trying to cool down before he accidentally punched some innocent person on the street in an attempt to relieve his anger.

Mark leaned against the side of the building, heaving big breaths as he stared at the floor. Once he caught his breath, it took all of Mark’s control to not turn and punch the brick building, since that would lead to nothing but debt and pain. 

Donghyuck still knew exactly how to get under Mark’s skin, even after all these years. It was the one thing that angered Mark the most. He hated it. He hated how well Donghyuck still knew him. It infuriated him to no end. Donghyuck was still as stuck-up as he had been in high school, shoving whatever he could in your face to make sure that he was still ahead. He really had no shame. He was so self-absorbed, it felt like Mark was talking to a toddler who had no account for anyone else than him.

Mark wished Donghyuck and his stupid perfect life could fuck out of his own life. He had better things to worry about. He couldn’t afford to lose sleep over someone as insignificant as Lee Donghyuck, of all people. 

It seemed that he had failed his challenge to stop letting Donghyuck affect him. 

Still, as much as Mark tried to hide it, throwing a hand through his hair, taking a big sip of his coffee, Donghyuck’s words had affected him. The same way as they always did. 

“Are you okay?” a concerned voice came from next to him. He looked down the dim alley to see three guys, all shorter than him, all with the same mirrored look of worry on their faces. As they came closer, Mark realized that they worked as models at NCT as well, and if he recalled properly, they were the Chinese models NCT had recently signed. 

Mark unclenched his jaw and breathed out. “I’m alright. I’ve just had a bad day.”

“You’re Mark Lee, right?” the shortest one asked, the lilt of his voice calming Mark down easily. 

Mark nodded. “You guys are the new models.”

The one with soft brown hair grinned and nodded. He pointed to himself, “I’m Yangyang. And this is Hendery, and Xiaojun,” he gestured to either side of him. “So what’s bothering you? Is it that Haechan guy? Everyone at NCT says you guys don’t work well together.”

Mark sighed and massaged his temples. Of course there were rumors surrounding him. “We’re working on it.”

Xiaojun stepped forward, “What I think you should do is tell Haechan to back off. He keeps attacking you for no reason, and it’s starting to affect both of your reputations.”

Mark didn’t know so many people at the company had heard about this. He honestly didn’t think anyone even knew his name.  

“It’s only going to get worse if you allow it,” Hendery said, his voice naturally soft and soothing Mark. All his anger had faded, leaving nothing but resentment towards the fiery model.

Mark nodded, “You’re right. Hey, thanks for talking to me. And good luck with your modeling.”

The three boys nodded and waved, wide smiles on their faces as they walked by, gently pushing each other playfully like kids would.  

Mark tipped back his coffee cup, draining the last bit of the soothing, now-cold drink before tossing it in the trash. He really needed to get a hold of himself. If what Yangyang had said was true, then Mark needed to fix things soon. They needed to come to an agreement. Mark wouldn’t let Donghyuck interfere with his work ethic or reputation. 

Before anything else, Donghyuck was a client for the time being, and as much as it pained Mark, he had to treat Donghyuck as a client. Nothing more, nothing less. 

 

*

 

The rest of Mark’s day was eerily empty of Donghyuck, a stark change from the day before. Mark appreciated it, he was able to breathe without the reminder of the uptight model in his head every second. 

Mark had wanted to put their disagreements aside and start fresh, but it was so,  _ so _ hard when Donghyuck was the way he was. He had started the conversation, but Donghyuck could never back down from a fight, proving just how immature the model still was. 

So here Mark was, sitting in the dark at 2 am, still furious from the events that had occurred earlier in the day. The lights were all turned off in his apartment, other than the small lamp on his table, and he was sitting on the floor of his room, notebook and pen in front of him. He had very soft music playing in the background; the only thing keeping him company aside from his thoughts. 

Writing songs was something he only did when he had time and inspiration, and it wasn’t very often that he had both those things at the same time. Today, he did have both time and inspiration, so here he was, bent over his paper, scribbling words, rhymes, chords, anything he could think of, he put down.

Mark’s fight with Donghyuck from earlier had brought up many memories from high school and made him feel like he was still in high school again. He took all those feelings and let them spill out onto the paper, letting his anger fade and be replaced with a meeker, more appreciative feeling. 

Mark spent the night awake, writing and writing, later turning to his guitar to further craft his song. By the end of the night, Mark had two and a half completed songs, and his feelings towards Donghyuck had lightened under the soft moon and bright stars. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> okay, so this is a super short chapter, so i'm gonna try to update twice this week!! anyways, i hope you enjoyed this lil chapter,,, don't worry, things will start picking up real soon !! talk to me on twitter if you'd like, @ honeyshyuck and leave a comment if you want!!!
> 
> have a good day!!  
> ash xxx


	3. chapter three

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mark and Donghyuck finally start making some progress in their relationship! They have a civil conversation and are almost friends!

Walking into the Dream building, Mark had a smile on his face, and he made sure to greet everyone he ran into. Today was a good day. Though he had gone to bed late last night, this morning had been a good morning. He hadn’t even spilled his coffee and that was a win for Mark Lee. The sun was up by the time he had awoken, and the weather was getting cold, just the way Mark loved. 

He was practically buzzing with excitement, he had finalized plans for a shoot abroad, in Canada, and he was feeling like nothing could bring him down. 

Though he did have a shoot scheduled with the Dreamies today, Mark knew that even Donghyuck couldn’t ruin his good mood today. Besides, from what he had seen so far, Donghyuck seemed a lot tamer when he was around the other Dream members, so Mark was hoping the shoot would go well. He didn’t want someone like Donghyuck ruining something that he enjoyed so much. 

“Mark! You’re here just in time!” he felt a small body collide into his side, causing him to sway to one side, an arm coming up to steady the other person. 

“Hey, Chenle! Looking good, all dressed up,” Mark teased, knowing that more often than not, Chenle didn’t really enjoy the outfits they put him in.

Chenle rolled his eyes and jammed a finger into Mark’s side but dragged him to their dressing rooms. Mark was pretty early, but it was just because he knew that most members took a while until they were completely ready, so it was just easier to be here early. 

“Mark!” Jisung yelled, a smile on his face as he looked up from his makeup chair.

“Hey, Jisung,” Mark greeted, taking a seat in the empty chair next to him. Renjun and Chenle were getting their hair done, while Jisung was getting his makeup done. There was still one person missing, though. 

“Where’s Donghyuck?” Mark let himself ask, not making eye contact with anyone. 

“Oh, he’s getting his outfit picked right now,” Renjun said, lifting his eyes up from his phone. 

Mark hummed and looked down at his own phone. He couldn’t stop thinking about the fact that in three weeks, he’d be in Canada, where the weather was colder, doing what his heart desired. 

Honestly, going back to Canada was the dream job for Mark. 

He wanted to shoot photos of things that mattered, things that he was passionate about. Not that Mark didn’t think fashion mattered, he just had bigger aspirations. He had thought about photojournalism all through college, and it was still his dream, though he had settled for other things along the way. 

To be going back to Canada and taking photos was surreal for Mark. He’d be going back to his mother, his country, everything he loved. Even the thought of it sent adrenaline rushing through his veins. 

Mark shook his head, a slight smile on his face as he watched Chenle and Jisung argue between which shade of purple was a more attractive hair color. Renjun rolled his eyes and Mark suddenly felt a little curious. 

“Hey, Renjun,” Mark said quietly, the younger boy’s inquiring gaze landing on him. 

“What’s up?” he replied, just as quietly.   
“Do you ever miss working with Jeno?” he asked, wringing his hands together, feeling a little nervous and out of place. He didn’t know why exactly he was asking this or what he wanted out of this conversation. 

“Of course,” Renjun looked at Mark, something unclear in his eyes. “I miss him every day. We still hang out, we’re still best friends, but it’s different when you aren’t working together. We spent basically all of our time together back then.”

Renjun’s voice had a slight nostalgic lilt to it, and his gaze had drifted to the wall behind Mark’s head. Mark nodded in understanding. 

“You know how I feel about Jeno, right?” Renjun asked, his voice just barely audible and slightly shaky.

As much of an amazing person Renjun was, Mark knew that sharing his feelings was something he always had trouble doing. Mark knew he thought of his feelings as a weakness, though they were nothing to be ashamed of.

“Yeah,” Mark nodded, then snapped his gaze back to the younger. “Wait, did you tell him?”

“No!” Renjun looked horrified at the words, his head whipping up in surprise and voice unexpectedly loud. 

Jisung and Chenle looked up from where they had been laughing together, shot the two of them judgy looks, and went back to their own antics. 

“No,” Renjun repeated firmly. “I just. He always talks about Jaemin. They model together now and it just seems like they’re getting along great. They went out together last night.”

Renjun’s voice was so shaky, and his hands were clenched tight as if he was containing all of his feelings within the confines of his fists, and if he even dared open them slightly, all his feelings would pour out like a flood. 

“Hey, hey, Renjun, look at me. I hope you know how much Jeno cherishes you. You’re his very best friend. And if you don’t want to tell him your feelings, that’s up to you. But you should tell him that you feel left out and replaced, okay? You never know, you and Jaemin might get along great,” Mark rushed to get out, his hands starting to sweat. He never was too good at giving advice, but he’d do his best for his friends. 

Renjun inhaled shakily, “The worst part is that I can’t even hate Jaemin. He’s gorgeous and talented and a sweetheart and he deserves someone like Jeno. I just wish Jeno hadn’t forgotten about me so soon after leaving the company. I just don’t want things to change.”

“I know, Junnie. We’ll figure it out, okay? You and Jeno should talk after this shoot, though. Now, cheer up! You need to look sexy for this shoot and you can’t do that while crying,” the older said, gently squeezing the younger’s shoulder, hoping to make him feel better for a few hours.

Renjun nodded at Mark gratefully. Mark gently let his hand rest on Renjun’s shoulder, waiting for him to stand. Luckily, his makeup hadn’t been ruined, so he was all ready for the shoot. As Mark looked around the dressing room again, everyone was ready and was now doing various warm-up activities. Jisung and Chenle were having a contest to see who could go the longest without laughing; Jisung’s face was contorted awkwardly as he held in his laughter, while Chenle’s face was alarmingly red.

The door flew open, and Mark’s hand dropped off of Renjun’s shoulder. Donghyuck walked in, a pair of black-rimmed, round lens glasses sitting atop his nose. They contrasted perfectly with his red hair and Mark suddenly found himself staring at the younger model, feeling like the temperature had risen a few degrees. Mark had started to sweat again, but he couldn’t take his eyes off of Donghyuck.

“Mark,” Renjun hissed, sharply poking him in the side. Mark winced but stopped staring. 

“Yeah?” he mumbled, tearing his eyes away from the gorgeous model. 

“What are you staring at? Am I just too hot for you to handle? I know my outfit’s an upgrade from the last one. See, the thing is, I actually helped design this. Which is why it looks so good,” Donghyuck winked and Mark rolled his eyes. Mark dismissed the idea that perhaps Donghyuck had also decided to act mature. Donghyuck was one of those people who just appeared better when they didn’t talk. Because when Donghyuck opened his mouth, it ruined all the good thoughts Mark had ever had of him. 

He didn’t give a fuck if Donghyuck designed his outfit. He had to admit that the outfit suited Donghyuck well. He was wearing a pretty blue plaid button-down, the navy blue sweater that Donghyuck had designed layered over. He had on black skinny jeans and boots that completed the outfit perfectly. It wasn’t something Mark had imagined Donghyuck in, ever, but he had to admit that Donghyuck rocked the outfit really well. 

“Just making sure my camera won’t break from how ugly you are,” Mark shot back instantly, already getting fired up. 

Donghyuck snickered before turning to Renjun, “See how quick I can get Markie Mark riled up? He’s the same after all these years.”

Understanding dawned upon Renjun’s face and he turned to face Mark, something akin to a look of betrayal displayed in his eyes. “You guys knew each other before that day at lunch?”

Mark sighed and Donghyuck grinned, though it was a forced smile with a bit of malice laced within. 

“We sure did! He was always around, for some reason. I could never get rid of him, no matter how hard I tried,” Donghyuck chuckled bitterly.

Renjun quietly groaned. “That’s why lunch was so awkward that day. I thought you guys just didn’t really know each other that well yet.”

“Yeah, well, I’d rather have had that than having see this guy every day for four years,” Mark grumbled, grabbing his camera equipment.

Donghyuck scoffed. “You were the one who made everything awkward, Mark. We were almost friends at one point.”

“I did what was best for the both of us, Donghyuck. I’m sorry that you’re still not old enough or mature enough to understand,” Mark explained forcefully, sick of saying the same things over and over and  _ over _ again. “I’m not interested in having this conversation again. Maybe we can try again when you’re older. If we’re all ready, let’s start.”

Donghyuck shrugged and followed Mark’s retreating figure out of the dressing rooms. Mark huffed in annoyance as he made his way to the shooting site. Leave it to Donghyuck to ruin his perfect day. 

Today’s shoot was an indoor shoot, the main focus was to be on the outfits. It was a group shoot, which Mark appreciated. 

For individual shoots, the directors trusted Mark to let him take charge of the shoot and have it be one-on-one, but group shoots had a little more substance to them. There were a few other photographers here today too, Mark noticed as he walked into the room, the bright white backdrop almost blinding Mark. There was a reason he liked shooting nature instead of people in brightly lit indoor locations. 

Mark sighed and started to unpack his own lights and other equipment. As he set up his ring lights, testing the various brightness settings against the white backdrop, he hoped that this shoot would be over with soon. He really just wasn’t in the mood to fake nice with Donghyuck today. He wanted to go home and get excited for his shoot abroad. It was crazy how quickly Donghyuck could get rid of his good mood, forcing a fake smile on his face. 

As Mark listened to the directors moving the Dream members in different positions, adding and removing props, he thought about what he would do in Canada. 

He would shoot the most wonderful photos of his career so far. The towering mountains iced with a slight layer of snow, the chilly breeze that was so familiar to Mark; the smell of pine and wood filling his nose. The place that seemed most like home to Mark was so close to Mark now, he felt like nothing could take it away. 

“Mark? Are you getting these? I look exceptionally good in this outfit,” Donghyuck pulled Mark out of his thoughts, pouting slightly. 

Mark rolled his eyes, but paid attention to his camera again, bringing it back into focus and re-adjusting the exposure. He was distracted, and that was never good for a shoot. He needed to focus on taking good photos, even though the thought of cold winter nights in Vancouver was the only thing running through his mind. 

 

“Okay, Donghyuck, I need you to scoot closer to Renjun,” Mark rubbed the bridge of his nose. They just needed a few more shots then he could go home. Except for the fact that Donghyuck wasn’t cooperating. 

“I’m already so close to him, Mark. I literally can’t get any closer to him,” Donghyuck grumbled and proceeded to squeeze closer to the aforementioned boy. Renjun rolled his eyes and sighed, sending both Donghyuck and Mark an oddly wary, parental look. 

“Can you guys work together for a few more minutes? We’re almost done. Seriously, just wait 10 minutes and then you guys can punch each other or suck each other’s faces off. Whatever you want. I can’t fucking tell anymore,” Renjun threw his hands up, looking annoyed with the two of them. 

Donghyuck stuck his tongue out at Renjun before facing Mark again. They continued to take photos, Mark working on his angles and Donghyuck working on his most provocative expressions. It worked for a little while, until Donghyuck had moved too far away from the rest of the group

“Okay, I’m sick of this,” Renjun sighed, after another twenty minutes of Donghyuck and Mark bickering over every little thing. 

“Sorry,  Renjunnie. I promise we’ll be nice,” Donghyuck said, jutting his lower lip out.

“I’m leaving,” Renjun announced and Jisung and Chenle swung their heads over from where they were shooting their own photos. 

“What? We’re not done yet,” Mark pointed out. 

“We’re not gonna get anything done until the two of you can be in the same room without arguing. This is just a waste of my time until you two figure out how to work together. Jisung, Chenle, let’s go.”

Jisung and Chenle looked at the director sheepishly before trudging after Renjun, who had already left the room, the youngest sending Mark a thumbs up and a quiet word of consolation.

One by one, each of the other photographers packed up their equipment before quietly exiting. When the only person left was Jisoo, Mark closed his eyes and sighed. This was so embarrassing. Renjun had every right to call them out like that, but the other photographers probably thought Mark couldn’t separate his personal and professional lives from each other. It wasn’t far from the truth. 

Beyond that, what would Jisoo think about this? Mark was sure that he would still get to shoot for Dream, but Jisoo’s opinion on him had probably changed. This wasn’t how today was supposed to go, Mark thought as he opened his eyes again. 

“Mark, Donghyuck, I’m giving you two an hour to figure out your differences and come to an agreement about working together. I hope we won’t have to reassign photographers this close to the release date,” Jisoo clapped her hands together, shooting Mark a stern look before walking out, letting the door slam dramatically loud behind her. 

The other photographers quickly followed, not even bothering to pack up their equipment. 

“Fuck,” Mark breathed and slid down the wall until he was seated on the floor, leaning his head back so he wouldn’t have to make eye contact with Donghyuck. 

He wasn’t in the mood to fight anymore, he was over this whole hate thing. They were both grown enough to act like mature adults. Mark didn’t care as much when it was just between them. But when it interfered with his work, when it made him look immature in front of his coworkers, that’s when Mark needed to put a stop to it. 

Mark contemplated sitting in silence for the whole hour, just ignoring Donghyuck and hoping that the next time they tried to shoot would go better. It wouldn’t be the worst idea in the world. But it wouldn’t solve anything either. And what was to say that the same thing didn’t happen next time or the time after that? Mark wasn’t planning on stopping shoots with Dream and it didn’t seem like Donghyuck was keen on leaving Dream either.

Mark did have an hour, after all. And it had been exactly two minutes since Jisoo had left the room. Mark would talk to Donghyuck by the thirty-minute mark. Guaranteed. 

The only sound in the room was Mark’s and Donghyuck’s soft breathing, and an uncomfortable feeling rose in Mark’s stomach. He couldn’t recall the last time they were in an enclosed space by themselves before. He didn’t think that it had ever happened, and it was making him feel uneasy. 

Without looking up to see what Donghyuck was doing, Mark grabbed his laptop and plugged his camera in, wanting to see if any of the photos he had taken so far had turned out decent. He wasn’t expecting much, he had been distracted  _ and _ irritated, both thanks to Donghyuck. 

The photos hadn’t turned out too bad. They were decent, for raw photos that Mark had taken while he wasn’t at the top of his game. Some had turned out horrible, out of focus and horribly lit, but some were pretty nice, the lighting accentuating certain features, like Donghyuck’s cheekbones, or Renjun’s nose. 

“Your photos are really pretty. You’re really really talented, Mark,” the photographer heard from beside him, the voice quiet and breathy and way too close to Mark’s ear. He could feel Donghyuck’s warm breath on the shell of his ear, and it sent a shiver down his spine. It confused him, one second Donghyuck was telling him that he shouldn’t have graduated university, and the next he was complimenting his photos. 

“Thanks, Donghyuck,” Mark sighed, knowing that whatever game they were playing didn’t matter anymore. Mark was going to stop this ridiculous fight, and Donghyuck didn’t have an option anymore. He had to give in, as well. 

“Do you have the photos from the shoot we did earlier? The one near Han River?” Donghyuck asked casually, scooting his face closer to Mark’s laptop screen, sending Mark a curious look. 

Mark felt something shift in his stomach; Donghyuck was acting the way he was that night when the both of them were drunk. Something was changing, and Mark wasn’t sure he was prepared. He didn’t know how to act around Donghyuck. Sure, they had almost been friends at one point, but a whole lot had changed since then. 

Mark nodded and found the file on his computer. He only had half of the photos edited, so some were still looking a bit raw and he wasn’t sure what Donghyuck would think about that. “I don’t have all the photos edited so if you want, we can only look at the edited-”

“Unedited photos are better than the edited ones. I wanna see all of them,” Donghyuck interrupted, sending Mark a shy smile. “If that’s okay with you, I mean.”

Mark found himself nodding, too enchanted to look away from Donghyuck’s eyes, hidden behind the round frames he still had on. 

They sat side by side, shoulders and knees touching, Mark’s laptop sitting on their legs, a comfortable silence blanketing them as they scrolled through the photos. 

It scared Mark how not even an hour ago, the two of them were bickering and couldn’t stop spitting insults at each other and now here they were. Mark was a little uncomfortable, but that was because Donghyuck was just so confusing. He was crazy annoying when he wanted to be, and he could instantly flip a switch and become the sweetest boy ever. It confused Mark to no end. 

“Wait, that one turned out really good,” Donghyuck commented, leaning closer to get a better look at the raw photo. 

It was one of Mark’s favorites too, though he hadn’t admitted it to himself yet. Donghyuck was holding his jacket up behind his head and the sun had been hitting him directly, illuminating his face. It had turned out really nice, even without editing. Mark couldn’t stop staring at Donghyuck’s smoldering gaze or his tanned skin. The golden sun had brought out his eyes, the caramel color shining prominently even through the screen.

“Mark?” Donghyuck asked, a hint of amusement sneaking into his voice as he snapped his fingers in front of Mark’s eyes. “Earth to Mark?”

“Huh,” Mark said dumbly, tearing his eyes away from his laptop’s screen. “You’re a really good model.”

Mark regretted the words as soon as they escaped his mouth. He felt a flush rising on his face and presumably up to his ears. Donghyuck’s lips quirked up. “Why, thank you, Mark! It might just be me but I could’ve sworn that you were insulting my modeling skills a few days ago?”

Mark looked away from Donghyuck, knowing that the younger had a mischievous grin on his face. “Hey, I have a question. Are you usually that rude only to me or does anyone else get this special treatment as well?”

This time it was Donghyuck who looked down, wringing his hands together. The atmosphere had turned solemn again.“Just you. I’m sorry about that, by the way. You didn’t deserve all that hate. I just had so many pent-up feelings and nowhere to take them out. I was just angry that you always seemed to get what you want and you still threw it away. But I know that’s not true. Well, mostly.”

Mark sighed, looking away as well. “I’m sorry. I never meant to hurt Soojin. I just wanted to do what was best for her.”

“I know,” Donghyuck said in a strangely gentle tone. “I have a question too, though. Why didn’t you leave Korea permanently? I know you really wanted to study abroad when we were in high school.”

Mark never remembered Donghyuck paying that much attention to him, but Donghyuck’s specialty was shocking him in different ways, and this was just another example of that. 

“I did study abroad; I went to Canada for two years but I just missed Seoul a lot. Vancouver was nice, but Seoul is my real home. There isn’t much left for me in Vancouver,” even just saying those words hurt Mark, they brought up old memories and reopened barely healed wounds. A heavy silence overcame the both of them, Donghyuck studying Mark’s face, Mark studying the floor. 

“I’m glad you came back,” Donghyuck confessed quietly. Mark looked up to see an unreadable expression in Donghyuck’s eyes. “Working with you has been the highlight of joining Dream. I don’t fit in here at all, but bickering with you made me feel like I belonged, even if it was in a bad way.”

Mark pursed his lips. What did Donghyuck even mean? Donghyuck fit it everywhere, that was just part of his personality. He voiced exactly that, “You make friends everywhere, you definitely fit in here. Everyone already loves you. Hasn’t working with Dream been fun?”

Mark thought to why Jeno had quit. Jeno didn’t have much bad to say about Dream, just that Jeno wanted to work on other things and gain other experiences. He always said good things about the company and the people. 

Donghyuck shrugged, eyes downcast. “Yeah, it’s been really fun so far. But everyone’s really experienced and talented, and this is a really high-end company. I don’t fit in here.”

Mark didn’t believe that. Donghyuck was so talented. Mark could tell from just two shoots with him. Donghyuck had a bright future in front of him in both modeling and designing. If anything, Donghyuck was meant for a prestigious company like this. 

“Fuck, sorry. I talk too much. I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable,” Donghyuck scooted away from Mark, putting more space between their bodies, his eyes trained on his shoes. 

Mark realized that he had been silent a second too long and their conversation was over. “No, you didn’t make me uncomfortable. And by the way, you’re meant for the fashion industry. Don’t think you’re not good enough.”

Donghyuck cracked a smile, albeit a small one. Mark felt warmth seep through his chest. Though his eyes were still on his shoes, he didn’t look as down as a few seconds ago, and Mark mentally patted himself on the back.

“Thanks. What are we supposed to be doing here anyway? Did Jisoo want us to finish up the shoot?” Donghyuck asked, standing up and stretching. He stretched his arms, his shirt rising a little, exposing a tiny sliver of stomach. Mark looked away as he felt another blush spread up his face. 

“Uhh,” Mark trailed off, too distracted to remember what Donghyuck had asked him. “Oh, I think she just wanted us to talk things out so tomorrow won’t be awkward.”

Donghyuck nodded. “Okay, well since that’s done, I think I’m gonna head out. I’m super tired. I’ll see you tomorrow, Mark!” the younger boy waved with a small smile, then he was off. 

Mark leaned his head back against the wall where he was still seated. Right, tomorrow. The shoot wasn’t over yet. At least they had gotten one outfit done properly. Mark figured that he should at least edit some of the photos from today, but he wanted Donghyuck out of his mind. 

He didn’t know when he had become so easily flustered, but Donghyuck seemed to have no problem getting him to blush. It was annoying, really. No one else had ever been able to make him flustered so easily. Or bring such a warm feeling to his heart. 

Mark got up, stretching, then started systematically putting all his equipment back, thoughts of a certain fiery-haired boy clouding his mind. 

 

*

 

“Are you sure you want me here?” Mark asked again, looking back and forth from Jeno to Jaemin, nervousness clear on both of their faces. 

“Yes!” Jeno nodded frantically and Jaemin let out a giggle, staring at Jeno in a way that made Mark want to leave even more. 

“You don’t have to stay, but it would definitely make this more comfortable for me,” Jaemin explained, Jeno throwing him an appreciative look. 

Mark sighed but took a seat on the couch anyways. “So why do you even want me here? I already know you guys and Renjun. You and Renjun are supposed to be the ones meeting,” he pointed at Jaemin.

“I know, but I’m nervous. And if things go bad, you can be here to help,” Jeno supplied, putting on his best puppy dog eyes. 

“Moral support, Mark hyung! You’re the best, no matter how awkward you are,” Jaemin smiled big, all his teeth on display, effectively melting Mark’s heart.

Mark rolled his eyes but nodded, caving in easily to his best friend. “Whatever.”

Jaemin grinned and took a seat next to Mark. “So how’s your shoot going? Jeno told me about the Dream members and I really want to meet them. They all seem so sweet! Probably better than the models I have to deal with every day.” 

Donghyuck flashed in Mark’s mind, his unsure smile prominent everytime he closed his eyes. Mark shook his head, he didn’t know why he had been thinking of Donghyuck so much over the past few days, but he had been an ever present being in Mark’s head. 

“Yeah,” Mark nodded, pulling himself away from that fruitless train of thought. There was no point in indulging in why Donghyuck had been on his mind so often. “All the Dream members are really sweet. You guys are gonna get along great.”

Jaemin beamed; Mark could tell that the pink haired boy was a naturally nice person, he made Mark comfortable, which wasn’t always easy. 

Jaemin turned to Jeno, “I hope they like me.”

Mark’s eyebrows furrowed in confusion. He knew that the two of them weren’t dating, but the way Jaemin currently had his hand positioned on Jeno’s thigh had him thinking otherwise. Mark wasn’t as oblivious as people usually thought he was, at least not that oblivious that he couldn’t tell that Jaemin was clearly interested in Jeno. 

Jeno placed his own hand on top of Jaemin’s, making Mark feel like he was intruding on something he shouldn’t be. “They’re gonna love you. if they can love Mark, they’ll definitely love you.”

“Why the hell did you have to come for me?” Mark complained, already regretting his decision to stay with Jaemin and Jeno. He checked his phone impatiently, wishing for Renjun to hurry up already and save him from his misery. 

Luckily, as if some higher being had heard his hopes, the doorbell to Jeno’s apartment rang, signaling that Renjun had arrived.

“Shit,” Jaemin looked panicked, hands flying up to his head to ruffle his hair. He breathed out as he followed Jeno to the door, which swung open right as they reached the entryway, Renjun pulling his key out and smiling wide at the sight of Jeno. 

“Hi,” Mark heard Renjun, his voice a little quieter than usual.

“Hey, Injunnie,” Jeno greeted, stepping aside as Renjun slipped off his shoes and walked in. 

“Injun, this is Jaemin! Jaeminnie, this is Renjun,” Jeno introduced the two as they all took a seat on the couch. 

“It’s good to finally meet you, Jaemin. Jeno’s told me lots about you,” Renjun said, flashing a dazzling smile. Mark could tell something was off with him, but he wasn’t able to put a finger on it. 

“Really? Wow. I can’t believe I’m really meeting Huang Renjun, holy shit. You’re so talented, oh my god,” Jaemin said, his face tinted pink. He groaned and buried his face in Jeno’s shoulder. “I can’t believe I said that out loud. Please ignore me. Fuck.”

Jeno and Renjun laughed, and Mark found himself stifling his own. Jaemin seemed like a sweet person. He was just worried about Renjun’s feelings that he clearly didn’t enjoy sharing with anyone.

“Anyways, do you guys wanna order food? Jisung and Chenle should be here in 30 minutes,” Jeno said, standing to find his takeout menus.

Once again, Mark felt like an outsider as Renjun started asking about Jaemin’s own modeling agency. Mark tried to listen, but he was more fixated on wondering what Donghyuck could be up to right now. Maybe he had plans with his own friends. But what if he was alone? Mark knew that in reality, he just wanted an excuse to text him and ask him to save him from this miserable hang out. They had only had a few civilized conversations and spent a few days together and Mark was already trying to be his friend. He gritted his teeth before tuning back into the conversation, firmly blocking any and all thoughts of a certain model. 

 

“Hey, Chenle,” Jisung whispered later, once the food had been ordered and the younger boys had finally arrived after their own shenanigans. 

“What?” Chenle whispered back.

“Do you think Renjun and Jeno will ever get their shit together and date?” Jisung asked seriously, eyeing the couch where Jeno and Renjun were sitting comfortably alongside Jaemin. Chenle and Mark both turned to look, being as discreet as possible. 

Renjun had his feet in Jeno’s lap and Jaemin was sitting next to Jeno, all cuddled up in his shoulder. It was a toothrottingly sweet scene, and Mark didn’t wanna see it. 

Chenle shuddered before turning back to his best friend. “I think Jeno’s gonna date Jaemin. Look at how cuddled up they are. Renjun and Jeno are best friends, I don’t they’re more than that.”

Jisung hummed before turning to Mark, “Do you think they’re gonna date, Mark?”

Mark just shrugged. If he was being honest, he had no idea. Jeno used to show interest in Renjun before Jaemin came along. The thing was, he was still showing interest in Renjun but also in Jaemin. 

“Kinda looks like Jeno’s a little overwhelmed with affection, don’t you think?” a saccharine sweet voice whispered from somewhere behind the trio. 

Mark looked back, finding the one and only Lee Donghyuck standing in the entrance of Jeno’s apartment, hair styled down and curly, a look Mark hadn’t seen before, casual and overwhelmingly soft. Mark’s heart immediately started beating faster at the sight of the younger. 

Donghyuck walked in, holding up a bag of food. “I brought food, guys!”   
Jisung and Chenle cheered, running over to see what Donghyuck had brought for them. Jeno and Renjun smiled and greeted him, calling him over to them. Jaemin stood and introduced himself, earning a cute smile from Donghyuck. The two of them had apparently met at a fashion show once, where they had snuck away and talked backstage for the entire show. 

Mark had almost forgotten how charming Donghyuck could be when he tried. His smile was cute, his front teeth on display. He was dressed pretty casually; a pair of ripped jeans and a button down that Mark thought was a pretty color of blue that contrasted nicely with his tan skin. 

“Hey, Mark,” Donghyuck took a seat next to him on the ground. There was a movie playing, but only Jaemin, Jeno, and Renjun were really paying attention to it. 

“Hey, Hyuck,” Mark flushed as he realized he’d used Donghyuck’s nickname. Donghyuck looked a little shocked too, but got over it quickly, masking it with a look of indifference instead.

The past few days had resulted in Donghyuck and Mark getting more comfortable with each other. They had finished their shoot with no problem, and had made conversation whenever they saw each other in the building. They had even ran into each other at the same coffee shop while Mark was trying to edit photos. 

“Why are you here?” Mark asked, wondering if there was something he had missed. He didn’t remember texting Donghyuck to come save him. 

Donghyuck made a face, a cross between pained and amused. “What do you mean? I was invited, obviously. Do you not want me here?”

A coy smile appeared on the younger’s face, a dead giveaway that he was just teasing Mark. Mark rolled his eyes. “I’d definitely prefer if you were far away from me, yeah.”

Donghyuck came closer, taking a seat next to Mark, so close that their legs were pressed up against each other. Mark’s heart rate increased, and he sent an alarmed look to Donghyuck. “What are you doing?”

“Watching the movie, obviously. Focus, I wanna see what happens,” he said, pretending to pay close attention to the TV. Mark scoffed but turned his own head towards the TV.

Mark suddenly felt the sudden urge to reach out and hold Donghyuck’s hand. It was so close to his; resting only inches away from his own on his thigh. Mark sneaked a glance in Donghyuck’s direction, who was focused on the movie playing on the TV. 

“Mark!” he heard a whisper, and turned to look. Renjun was waving him over by the wall, where Jeno and Jaemin couldn’t see him. 

Mark shot him a questioning look, to which Renjun gestured even more wildly. Mark sighed but stood, eliciting a confused look from Donghyuck. “I’ll be right back,” he whispered quietly before heading over to Renjun. 

“What’s up?” he asked once he got within earshot of Renjun. The younger boy was pacing, his hands running through his hair violently, a panicked look taking over his usual calm demeanor.

“Fuck, I’m really fucked. Mark, what do I do? Fuck,  _ fuck _ ,” Renjun muttered, not looking up from the floor. He collapsed against the wall, letting his head bang loudly against the wall. 

“Renjun? Are you okay?” they heard Jeno ask, and then some shuffling, clearly indicating that someone was coming to check on him. 

“Fuck,” Renjun hissed, his eyes widening, coming completely undone. Mark had never seen Renjun in a state of panic like this. Not even before the release of his first solo shoot. Renjun sprinted into the bathroom, slamming the door behind him, and leaving Mark to come up with an excuse by himself. 

He looked over to where Donghyuck was staring at him like he was about to die laughing at Mark’s expression. Mark shot him a glare before pointedly turning to Jeno and Jaemin, both of which had come to see what the ruckus was about. 

“Everything okay?” Jeno asked as Jaemin wondered, “What happened?”

“It’s all good. I-um, needed to pee really bad, but I didn’t know that Renjun was in here, so I just punched the wall really lightly. Because I really needed to pee,” Mark clarified, hoping that his face wasn’t too red. 

“Uh huh,” Jeno nodded slowly, clearly not buying it. 

“Okay, that’s not the truth,” Mark came clean. 

He heard a tiny squeak come from the bathroom, where Renjun no doubt had his ear pressed against the door. 

“So what is?” Jaemin asked, leaning a hand on his hip the way Mark’s mother would. Except in a more charming way.

“Well, you see, no one told me that Donghyuck was invited. Or that he was coming. So I was expecting to have a really lowkey, chill night with my best buds, but all of a sudden Donghyuck showed up. And I was frustrated, because he really,  _ really _ gets on my nerves,” Mark bullshitted, hoping they would buy it. It wasn’t far from the truth. He was annoyed at Donghyuck. But that wasn’t the full extent of his feelings towards the model. 

Both Jeno and Jaemin nodded slowly, simultaneously looking back and forth from Donghyuck, who looked like he currently wanted to kill him, to Mark, who looked so red he almost outshined tomatoes. 

“Wait, you guys don’t like each other?” Jaemin asked, his eyebrows furrowing in confusion, and Jeno groaned in annoyance.

“It’s a long, dumb story, Minnie. I’ll tell you later. Let’s go sit back down. I really don’t care about how much Mark and Donghyuck hate each other.”

Jisung and Chenle both looked like they were going to suffocate from holding their laughter in, judging by the redness of their own faces. Mark rolled his eyes and walked over to the bathroom, lightly rapping on the door. 

“Come out, Junnie,” Mark said flatly.

The door opened, and a sheepish looking Renjun met him. 

“I overreacted,” he mumbled, looking at the ground guiltily. 

“Yeah, you did. But what’s bothering you?” he asked, sliding down the wall until he was seated against it. 

Renjun followed, leaning his head back as he looked over at Mark. 

“I fucked it up. I should’ve said something to Jeno before he left the company. I should’ve asked him out. Now I’ll never have that chance. I can’t tell him now, it’ll fuck up our friendship and his relationship with Jaemin,” Renjun admitted, closing his eyes as his voice wavered. His fists were clenched tight, and Mark could see just how hard of a situation this was for Renjun. 

“Junnie, you should still tell him,” Mark suggested softly, leaning closer to gently bump his shoulder against Renjun’s. 

“There’s no point. I’ll mess up things between Jaemin and Jeno, and I literally have zero chance with him. And you wanna know what’s even worse? I’m such a bad person,” he chuckled bitterly, before burying his head in his shaking hands. 

Mark frowned, Renjun was so hurt. And he didn’t know what to do. He put a hand on Renjun’s back, gently rubbing circles the way his mom used to do when he was younger, hoping that it was a little comforting. It was hard for him to see Renjun this way. Renjun was usually the most stable of them, usually the one to lend his shoulder for others to lean on, and Mark was sure it was hard for the roles to be reversed so suddenly for Renjun.  

“What’s even worse?” he coaxed gently, letting Renjun take his time. 

The smaller boy took in a shaky breath, not lifting his head up as he muttered, “I can’t even be mad at Jaemin either because I really like him.”

“I really like him too, why does that make you a bad person?” Mark asked, not quite understanding the connection between the two. 

He heard a sigh behind him and he turned to see Donghyuck coming to the other side of Renjun, kneeling down and pulling him into a hug. 

“I promise you’re not a bad person, Renjun. I know we haven’t known each other for that long, but you’re probably the most pure, honest person I know. And I don’t know the right answer for this situation, but I hope you do what’s best for you. Not what’s best for Jeno or Jaemin,” he said, his voice barely above a whisper. His eyes bored into Renjun’s clearly conveying all the emotion that he wasn’t voicing. All of his focus was on Renjun, who looked dangerously close to tears. 

“Let’s get you out of here, yeah? We don’t have to talk about this right now,” he offered, looking so kind and so different than the Donghyuck Mark was used to. 

Mark finally understood why Donghyuck had been so popular; why he had so many friends that were so strongly loyal to him. It was because Donghyuck  _ was _ a good person, Mark just never got the chance to see that. 

Even now, Mark only got to see a sliver of the good parts of Donghyuck, and it was indirect. A strange feeling whirled around his stomach, some sort of envy and bitterness mixed together to form a pool of uneasiness at the fact that he and Donghyuck were still not civil enough for Donghyuck to treat him with this type of gentleness. 

Renjun sniffed and nodded, finally looking up, his hair a mess and eyes red, but Donghyuck looked like he had it under control. They stood up together, Donghyuck keeping an arm wrapped around Renjun’s waist, slowly walking over to the apartment door. Donghyuck quickly turned back and shot Mark a look, clearly telling him to come up with an excuse to get the three of them out of there. 

Mark nodded before turning into the living room, seeing Jeno and Jaemin so clearly in their own world, unaware that Renjun was almost in tears because of the thought of them together. Jisung and Chenle shot him a questioning look. Mark just frowned, but the youngers seemed to get the message. Their content looks dropped and looks of worry replaced them. 

“It’s okay,” Mark said under his breath, just quietly enough for them to hear. Jisung looked like he wanted to go and comfort Renjun himself, but Chenle held him in place, tugging his hand closer to his body. 

“Hey, guys. Donghyuck, Renjun, and I need to go to the convenience store real quick. We’re gonna buy some drinks, okay?” Mark said casually and Jeno nodded, though he looked a little confused. Jaemin looked a bit suspicious and worried but nodded slowly, buying Mark’s explanation. 

“I think I have some drinks-” Jeno started but Mark had already turned, grabbing his keys, phone, and wallet before leaving the apartment hurriedly.

Once the door closed, Mark sighed, closing his eyes to take a second. He was so confused. He was really worried about Renjun, but at the same time, every time he heard Donghyuck being so nice, his heart did a weird flip. He shuddered before throwing his coat on. 

“Yukhei?” he asked as the taller boy walked up to Jeno’s door, eyes crinkling into a smile.

“Hey, Mark. Where are you going?” he asked, looking around the empty hallway. 

“Me and Donghyuck and Renjun are just heading to the convenience store real quick. We’ll be right back,” Mark explained hastily, and Yukhei’s eyebrows furrowed. 

“Wait, Donghyuck? Weren’t you-”

Mark pushed Yukhei in the direction of Jeno’s door, too occupied with getting out of there to explain himself to the older boy. “Just go in, I really need to go!”

With that, he spun on his heel and sprinted down the corridor, turning the corner only to see Donghyuck and Renjun waiting for him. 

“You coming?” Donghyuck had turned at the end of the hallway with Renjun, eyebrows raised in question. 

“Yeah,” Mark was slightly out of breath, but he took off again through the dimly lit hallway, following his two friends. 

 

The three of them had found a ramen place that was still open, and they quietly ordered food for themselves, Renjun staying silent the entire time, staring ahead of him as if he was making up scenarios in his head where things didn’t go wrong, ideal situations in which he was preferably with both Jeno and Jaemin. 

It was a quiet place, the only other people in here being a young couple, probably still in high school. The restaurant was quiet, soft pop music filtering through the speakers, filling the air comfortably. 

Mark, though, couldn’t stop worrying over his younger friend. Renjun was barely functioning; it was something Mark had never seen before, even though he’d known Renjun for almost 3 years. His head was on the table, eyes closed, and a few tears had slipped out that he hadn’t bothered to wipe away. Donghyuck looked worried too, unsubtle glances thrown towards the distraught boy every time a whimper or shudder escaped the boy’s body. All of a sudden, Mark felt horrible that he couldn’t do his job as a friend and had pulled Donghyuck into this too. 

“Renjun, you should eat. Just eat a little,” Donghyuck urged, pushing the plate of food towards him. When he didn’t make a move to get up, he tried again. “Will you talk to us? You might feel better if you talk to one of us.”

Renjun lifted his head, more tears falling as he struggled to get his emotions in check. He shivered, and Donghyuck wrapped him in a quick hug again, rocking him gently back and forth. 

The waiter who had been serving them had already given Renjun a free coffee, but he was back again, a sympathetic smile on his face as he placed more bowls of ramen on the table, more than Mark and Donghyuck could finish by themselves. 

“These are for you,” the sweet waiter told Renjun softly, “I know you’ll get through whatever hardships you’re going through.”

With a soft smile and wave, he left their table again, leaving the three boys in silence.

“I think I love Jeno.”

Mark choked on the sip of water he was taking. Donghyuck’s eyes widened almost comically, eyebrows shooting up and mouth falling wide open. Renjun looked nonchalant about his confession, swirling his straw in circles in the glass of water distractedly, his eyes out of focus.  

“What?” Mark managed to say. 

“And I really really like Jaemin. I don’t know what’s wrong with me, because I’d hate to hurt either of them, but that’s what I’m doing right now,” Renjun ignored Mark and Donghyuck’s reactions, talking into the void, not caring if anyone was even listening. 

“It’s okay if you’re confused,” Donghyuck said after he had processed what Renjun had said.

“Okay, I’m done talking,” Renjun met Mark’s eyes. “Now I’m going to take a nap for a while. You guys should talk. Get to know each other better.”

He then proceeded to scoot away some of the bowls, making enough room for him to lay his head on top of his arms, closing his eyes firmly, signaling the end of the conversation. 

Mark turned to his food, eating his ramen quietly. As long as Renjun was feeling better, he’d be fine too. Awkward silence filled the table, both him and Donghyuck ignoring each other as they ate. Mark didn’t mean to ignore Donghyuck, he just didn’t know what to say. To make matters worse, Mark’s brain kept replaying the way Donghyuck had comforted Renjun, delicate touches and soft words leaving his mouth. 

Renjun opened an eye and looked from Donghyuck to Mark and back again. “Why aren’t you talking? One day you guys are gonna thank me for forcing you to talk because this is gonna be your unofficial first date. Do you really want to spend your unofficial first date not talking to each other?” Mark wondered if Renjun had drank too much at Jeno’s and the alcohol had gotten to his head. 

“I’m serious. You guys better start talking or I’ll give you some conversation starters,” Renjun warned before closing his eyes again. 

Mark was fully prepared to sit in silence again, slurping noodles and sipping his tea, but Donghyuck broke the silence.

“Is movie night usually this chaotic at Jeno’s?” he asked wryly, eyebrows raising as he met Mark’s eyes. 

Mark choked out a laugh. “Honestly, this is the most eventful movie night we’ve ever had. Usually we just eat and drink and sometimes Renjun and Jeno make heart eyes at each other,” Renjun swatted Mark’s arm, not bothering to raise his head up or open his eyes.    
Donghyuck nodded. “Okay, I have an idea. Since this is our unofficial first date, we should get to know each other better right?”

“What? This isn’t actually a date! We’re-” Mark didn’t want to imagine himself dating Donghyuck. A flush was already spreading up his face, warming him uncomfortably.

“Okay, perfect!” Donghyuck interrupted, sending Mark a sharp look, clearly telling him to play along. Mark reluctantly sat back in his chair. “So how about Renjun asks us some questions and we answer them! That way we can learn more about each other!”

At Donghyuck’s words, Renjun’s head whipped up, a coy smile on his lips. “Yeah, that sounds great!”

Mark sighed but went along with it anyways, he knew that the two younger boys would force him to do whatever they wanted. 

“Okay, hold on, I need to go to the restroom real fast,” Renjun pushed his chair back and slowly walked to the bathrooms.

“Why would you do that? Now he’s gonna think we’re interested in each other and he’s gonna tell everyone!” Mark turned to Donghyuck once Renjun was out of earshot. “This is gonna be so bad for both of our careers! It’s fine that we’re friends and that we don’t hate each other, but don’t you think indulging Renjun is bad? What is the company gonna think if this gets to them? If this gets out to any fans, your whole career is gonna be gone. Just think about that, Donghyuck.”

Donghyuck looked taken aback for a second, but there was a fire in his eyes that Mark found so familiar, like a warm scent you never paid much attention to, but once you lost it, it was all you could think about. It encouraged him to fall back into their old patterns; jump to conclusions, argue about it, hate each other even more, rinse, repeat.

“It’s just to get Renjun’s mind off of his own problems! If he wants to pretend like he’s helping us get together, don’t you think we should go along with it? He’s obviously not thinking the way he usually does. We can ask him to forget about it tomorrow and that he won’t tell anyone. Do you have a problem with the situation or do you have a problem with me?”

Donghyuck was breathing hard, but he looked completely in control, opposite of Mark. He was sure he looked fine on the outside, but he was really only a few seconds away from getting up and bolting out of there. He wasn’t sure what exactly he had a problem with, but he knew that it was more than the situation. Donghyuck was just . . . Donghyuck. It was so hard to say no to him, but Mark really didn’t like the way his heart beated faster whenever the younger complimented him or stared at him with a certain look on his face. 

Donghyuck’s stare bored into him, pressing him into giving in. The fire faded from Mark, leaving a tired resigned look in its place.

“Fine, I’ll do it, okay? Are you happy now?” Mark relented, dropping his chin into his hands, watching Donghyuck’s expression change.

“If it makes you uncomfortable, we don’t have to do it,” Donghyuck said softly, backtracking on his earlier words. “I just don’t want Renjun to be thinking about his mistakes the whole night. Nothing good ever comes from that. It’ll be good for him to have a distraction.”

He was looking down, so his hair covered his eyes and Mark couldn’t make eye contact with him. The tone of the conversation had switched so fast, Mark couldn’t keep up. They had gone from comforting Renjun, to going at each other’s throats, to having a softer conversation. The way Donghyuck had said those words bothered Mark. It seemed like he was speaking from experience, and not just from observation. 

The two of them settled back into silence, Mark was wrapped in his thoughts, thinking about what Donghyuck had been talking about. 

They stayed silent until Renjun had come back, forcing Mark to switch spots with him so that he was sitting next to Donghyuck. 

“Okay, first question,” Renjun cheered, a faint hint of a smile appearing on his mouth as Mark groaned. “What was your first impression of the other?”

 

*

 

Mornings were normally Mark’s favorite part of the day when everything was calm and he had time for himself, but there were some days that he just couldn’t drag himself out of bed for various reasons. Sometimes he was just exhausted, and needed a few more hours to fully recharge, but sometimes, there was something more.

So when Mark awoke, with a heart-wrenching pain in his heart as well as a pounding headache, he let himself turn over and bury his head back in his pillow. 

He knew that when he checked his phone, there would be messages from his mom, Jeno, and Yukhei, who knew what the day entailed. But he couldn’t bring himself to pick the device up.

Instead, he stared at his spinning fan, the systematic noise of the spinning both infuriating Mark while simultaneously calming him down. He focused on the sound, trying to ignore the thoughts in his head as they got louder and more apparent. 

Mark picked up his phone and sat up in bed, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes and unlocking the device. He had a missed call from his mom and Jeno, and a wave of texts that were still coming through. Mark appreciated the fact that people cared about him enough to pay attention on days like this, but he just wanted to lay in bed all day and watch the movies that his father loved.

He savored the feeling of his bed’s warmth for a second, before sitting up and dialing his mom’s number, knowing that she would be waiting for his call, despite the time difference. 

She picked up on the first ring, “Mark? Hi, baby. How are you? Did you just wake up?”

Mark smiled, he had missed the sound of his mom’s voice. 

“I’m good, Mom. I miss you. And yeah, I did just wake up, it’s still early here,” he yawned, knowing that his mom was on the other end of the phone call relaxed him.

They talked for a bit, before the topic of Mark’s dad was brought up. 

“Are you doing alright? Make sure you get out of your apartment today, Mark. I know it’s hard, but just walk around or talk to Jeno, okay? Even just getting coffee will do,” her concerned tone warmed Mark’s heart, putting a small smile on his lips. 

He nodded. “Okay, I will, Mom. You get out of the house too, alright? Are you going to visit him tomorrow?”

Her tone was sad, and Mark clenched his sheets, his knuckles turning near white as he was overcome with a wave of emotion. “Yeah, I will, sweetie. I’ll take a bouquet for you, too. He’d be so proud of you, Mark.”

Mark had gone to his father’s grave every year since that fateful day that almost ruined Vancouver winters for him. He hated being in that cold, dark, environment, but even just talking to his father for a few minutes brought him comfort that nothing else could. 

Mark smiled somberly, tears slowly wettening his eyes. “I hope he’s happy up there,” he managed to whisper, looking up to the ceiling as if he could stare straight through it to the skies, where he believed his father would be. 

His mom comforted him, assuring him that yes, his father would be proud of him, even if he wasn’t with him anymore. It had been three years, and the wound still opened up when Mark watched old Canadian movies or watched a hockey game, things he had done exclusively with his father. 

His mother soon hung up, and he felt guilt rising through him as he thought of his mother; his strong, hardworking, amazing mother, who was alone in Canada right now because he was in Korea. She had her own mother with her, but Mark felt guilty that he wasn’t closer to her, especially on this day. 

He fell back in his bed, thoughts clouding his mind that only made it more difficult to get out of bed. 

The sun had risen, causing the ache in Mark’s heart to worsen. How could the sun rise on a day that brought Mark and his family so much pain? He glared at the bright rays of light, as if they had personally offended him, another rush of tears springing to his eyes as he remembered him and his dad drawing on the sidewalk with chalk and playing soccer under the hot sun of a warm summer day when he was a kid. Though his father spent more time disapproving of his decisions, there were certain memories Mark liked to hold close to his heart and never let go. 

Mark didn’t want to face the sun today. He sat up and closed his curtains, blocking some of the light, and turned on his side so he was blanketed in the darkness again. 

He glanced at his phone, his mind coming up with redundant ideas that Mark did his best to ignore, turning over and closing his eyes tight as if he could banish the ideas from ever taking place.

After five minutes of failed attempts at sleep and a bigger headache, he sighed and grabbed at his phone, quickly dialing a number and holding the phone up to his ear, waiting nervously for the result. 

It rang three times before a softly mumbled, “Hello?”

Mark breathed out, freezing as he realized that he had picked up. He hadn’t thought this far ahead. He had no idea what to say now that Donghyuck had picked up. 

“Hello? Mark? Did you butt-dial me? Is that possible on a smartphone?” Donghyuck muttered the last part to himself, and Mark could just imagine the wondering look that was bound to be on the younger’s face; his face scrunched up as he woke up, a content smile on his lips.

“I’m here. I just, uh, I guess I just felt lonely?” Mark blurted the last part, eyes widening in embarrassment as he realized exactly what he had just implied. 

He heard a cough then some rustling on the other side, then, “Are you feeling okay? You sound kinda sick.”

Mark sighed, he really wanted to tell Donghyuck, he just wasn’t sure if he would regret it later or if Donghyuck would even want to hear it. 

“Donghyuck, if I tell you something personal, would you be mad?” Mark bit down on his lip, looking up at his ceiling once again. 

“No?” came Donghyuck’s slightly confused voice. “Whatever it is, you can tell me.”

Donghyuck’s voice was warm and reassuring, and it made Mark want to spill his guts even more. He breathed out, all of a sudden, after that night at the restaurant, Donghyuck was someone Mark didn’t hate anymore. They weren’t quite friends, but that was most likely why Mark felt so calm about sharing this with him. Sometimes it was harder to reveal things to the people closest to you.

“Okay,” Mark breathed and sat up, playing with the strings of his sweatshirt. 

“I’m listening,” came Donghyuck’s sweet, quiet voice. 

Mark nodded to himself, he was really gonna tell Donghyuck all this, before launching into the story. He told Donghyuck how he and his father didn’t have the greatest relationship growing up, because Mark never liked it in Korea as much as his father did, Mark had grown up mostly in Canada. They could never quite find things to agree about, or common hobbies, so they weren’t very close, but Mark still loved and appreciated him more than anything.

When Mark had left for university, their relationship started to improve slowly, they talked about hockey more and Mark realized photography had been a small hobby of his father’s too. Mark’s parents had moved to Canada a year after Mark started university, so for Mark’s second year of university, he could visit his parents every few weeks, and he did, bringing him and his father closer, making up for the time that they didn’t spend together when Mark was a kid.

Mark moved back to Korea for his third year of university, finding that he missed Korea and his parents had agreed that studying in Korea was a good decision for him and for potential job offers and internships.  

That December, his father had passed away from a heart attack, one that wasn’t detected soon enough, and ended up being fatal. That year, Mark hadn’t been able to get home during their fall break, and winter break had still been a few weeks away, so Mark hadn’t seen his father since August.

Mark felt so guilty after, guilty for never bonding with his father when he was younger, guilty for leaving Canada, and most of all, guilty for putting his own dreams and himself before his family.

Donghyuck listened quietly, letting Mark spill his thoughts and conscience to him, staying silent until Mark had finished.

A few tears had escaped Mark’s eyes, and his pulled his shirt up to wipe at his eyes.    
“Today marks three years, and I just feel bad about not being there with my mom. She’s all alone, and I miss Vancouver and the snow, and I don’t like living in the city, and I miss my dog,” he sniffled.

He heard Donghyuck sigh softly, before he said gently, “I’m sorry that you didn’t get more time to spend with your dad, but I’m sure he’d be so proud of you now. And don’t blame yourself, Mark. Every day will be better. Just hang on, alright? Promise.”

Mark nodded, though he knew that Donghyuck couldn’t see him. “Okay,” he whispered. “Thanks for being here.”

Mark spent the whole day in bed anyway, but he had Donghyuck as a reminder that there were people he could lean on. He appreciated the fact that Donghyuck had comforted him, and for some reason, it made Mark feel better than he thought it would, lifting his spirits. By the end of the day, he had opened his curtains, letting some of the sunlight in.  

 

* 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hello!! late update, but last week was a busy week for me! i hope you enjoyed reading this chapter, because i had such a good time writing it, especially the last scene, that was definitely one of my fav scenes in this fic. ok anyways!!! scream about nct w me on twitter @ honeyshyuck !! and have a good night/day!!
> 
> ash xxx


	4. chapter four

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Donghyuck and Mark share a bed and lots of other sweet moments !

As the date of Mark’s Canada trip got closer and closer, his schedule got more hectic. He had a few shoots he had to do before the trip that was only a week and a half away. He was excited, he hadn’t seen his mom in almost a year, so he was beyond thrilled to see her again. 

He also had been trying to get Jeno and Renjun to talk, but Renjun had put everyone under the impression that he was completely alright, when Mark knew that was bullshit. Apparently Donghyuck knew it too, because he had found Donghyuck cornering Renjun asking him what it would take for him to just  _ talk _ to Jeno. That encounter had ended with Renjun smiling and telling Donghyuck that his boyfriend was here, while pointing to Mark, and taking the opportunity to run after snickering at both of their mortified faces. 

After that night at dinner, even if Mark didn’t want to admit it, he found himself enjoying Donghyuck’s company more and more. Donghyuck was a pretty entertaining guy. He had spent the whole two hours Renjun had spent asking questions laughing. Donghyuck could be really charming when he wanted to. 

So when Mark showed up to their shoot location, he automatically found himself scanning the area for Donghyuck before anyone else. 

They were shooting in front of an old building today, it was run down and looked older than all the Dream members’ ages put together, but it wasn’t scary. It looked futuristic, juxtaposing its age, fitting in perfectly with Dream’s newest concept. 

As Mark started to set up his equipment, he realized that this was their last shoot for this release. He wouldn’t be shooting for NCT for at least another few months. Usually even when he wasn’t shooting for NCT, he’d still see his friend group regularly, on weekends and nights, so he wasn’t too worried about that. He was a little disappointed that he wouldn’t be seeing Donghyuck regularly, unless Jeno and Renjun invited him over during their hangouts. Mark wouldn’t be completely opposed to that. Judging from the few interactions Donghyuck had had with his friends, he seemed to be flawlessly integrating himself in. And honestly, Mark was glad that Donghyuck got along with them.

“Hey, Mark,” a pair of arms slid around his neck, and a chin found its home on Mark’s shoulder. 

“Hey, Donghyuck?” Mark’s face flushed red as he felt Donghyuck’s warm breath on his cheek. Mark had noticed was that Donghyuck was very affectionate with those he was comfortable with. He didn’t know that they were at the level of friendship where Donghyuck greeted Mark like this, but once again, Mark wasn’t complaining. 

“I can’t believe this is our last shoot for the new release. It went by so fast. I’m a certified model now,” Donghyuck grinned, settling in a camp chair next to where Mark was setting up his camera. 

“You were always a certified model. You literally modeled in Paris,” Mark pointed out with a fond smile. 

Donghyuck laughed. “You’re right, but now I’m really certified. I’m finally modeling in my hometown. It’s a completely different feeling.”

Mark wondered if he would feel like that when he was in Canada less than two weeks away. 

“Mark, are you ready? The sun’s perfect right now,” Jisoo called over to him, pulling him out of his thoughts about a place full of snow and trees, a place that was as dear to Mark as Seoul was to Donghyuck. 

 

Later, when the shoot was over, Mark found Donghyuck leaning against his car. “What’s up, Hyuck?”

The nickname had slipped out again, and Mark flattened his lips, hoping that Donghyuck didn’t think it was weird. Donghyuck’s lips quirked up, but he didn’t address it further.

Instead, he just pouted and looked up at Mark. “I’m hungry. Do you wanna get something to eat? Plus, now I can actually finish the whole bowl since the shoot is over. Until the actual show, anyways.”

The chilly wind whipped around, making Donghyuck’s hair flutter sporadically. It was cute, the hair that had been so impeccable during the day, finally coming undone and resting on his forehead now. The sun had set a while ago; they had shot for the whole day, and Mark had a lot to edit over the next few days, but he was happy. 

He hated the fact that Donghyuck wasn’t able to eat what he wanted to most of the time, but it was part of his job. Mark wanted to take advantage of the few days that Donghyuck could eat as much as he wanted to. 

“Sure, I’m starving,” Mark gently bumped his shoulder against Donghyuck’s, pulling his jacket tighter around himself as the wind really picked up. “Get in, it’s cold.”

Donghyuck beamed, his cute front teeth on full display as he opened the door for himself, shivering once he touched the cold leather of Mark’s car. 

Their shoot had wrapped up early, in part because they had shot plenty of good photos, but also because there was a winter storm heading their way, and it was below freezing. Far too cold for the models to be in one layer of clothing with no jacket. 

Of course, Mark didn’t mind, since he had a cute boy in his car who was starting to become one of Mark’s closest friend. 

 

The ride to the jjajangmyeon place they had ran into all those days ago was fun, Donghyuck had started blasting some music that was apparently trendy right now, and Mark discovered something else new. 

Donghyuck could sing really really well. His voice was unique, the only way Mark could describe it was that it was sugar sweet, like honey dripping melodically. His singing voice was soft, melodic, and soothing to Mark’s ears. Even though Donghyuck clearly wasn’t trying, he still hit every note and stayed on key the whole song. 

Mark was really tempted to just close his eyes and enjoy the way Hyuck’s voice washed over him gently, but of course, he couldn’t do that. He settled for complimenting him instead.

“Your voice is pretty nice,” Mark commented in the silence in between songs. He sneaked a quick glance at the younger, and if he hadn’t known better, he would’ve thought there was a pretty pink blush adorning his cheeks. 

“Thanks. Remember when I starred in our school’s musicals each year? The ones that you never came to?” Donghyuck asked, reverting back to teasing the older. 

They fell back into playful, easy banter, but the whole time, Mark couldn’t get the image of Donghyuck with a cute pink blush painted on his face out of his mind, his soft smile imprinted on Mark’s eyelids. 

 

After picking up their food, Mark and Donghyuck find themselves laying on Mark’s couch, the TV playing in the background, but both boys had their focus somewhere else. Or, on  _ someone _ else, more accurately. 

Donghyuck was currently looking down at his phone, having received a text from someone just seconds ago. Mark had seized the opportunity to examine Donghyuck’s face shamelessly, and he was doing just that. 

Mark had never noticed how many moles Donghyuck had on his face. Mark really liked them. He thought they were gorgeous, and he wondered what it would be like to kiss them. He also had never noticed how tanned his skin was. Of course, during shoots, his skin was most prominent to Mark, but here, under dimmer, more natural lights, the planes and concaves of Donghyuck’s face were more soft, accentuated by the beautiful tan shade his skin was. Donghyuck really glowed no matter where he was. 

Donghyuck looked up from his phone, mouth twisted into a frown. The frown evened out as he met Mark’s eyes, clearly catching the older staring. There was a sparkle in his eyes as his lips quirked up, a soft smile overtaking his features. 

“Whatcha starin’ at?” he asked softly, his voice barely above a whisper. Mark’s heart skipped a beat, the way Donghyuck was looking at him right now was too much. But he couldn’t tear his eyes away as he was tempted to lean closer, to close the distance between them, his gaze flickering down to the younger’s plush lips. 

Donghyuck’s phone buzzed again, just as Mark had decided to just go for it, just do whatever his heart was urging him to do. Mark froze, and stumbled back, as far away as he could get from Donghyuck on the couch, his back roughly hitting the arm of the couch. 

There was something akin to disappointment on Donghyuck’s face as he sighed, a sound that wouldn’t have been audible if Mark wasn’t so tuned in to Donghyuck’s actions. He looked down at his phone, checking on who had texted him, and Mark’s curiosity got the best of him. 

“Who is it?”

Donghyuck tapped away at his screen before looking up. “Renjun. Jeno and Jaemin won’t stop texting him updates about the date they’re going on tonight. Apparently Jaemin really really liked Renjun, and they got coffee together yesterday, which made Renjun like him even more. And now he’s more confused, while Jeno and Jaemin keep separately texting him updates on how the date is going.”

Mark felt an ache in his heart for Renjun. He wanted to help him out, he just didn’t know how. What was the best decision in this situation? Should he tell Jeno and Jaemin to stop texting Renjun? Should Renjun just take some days off for himself? Was this something Mark could even help with?

“Renjun’s strong, Mark. He’ll be okay,” Donghyuck reached over and squeezed Mark’s hand, once, twice, before releasing it and retreating back to his own side of the couch. 

Mark swallowed, nodding. “I know. I just want him to not hurt, you know?”

“I wish the three of them would talk. It’s obvious that Renjun likes Jeno and Jaemin, and it really looked like both of them were interested in him too,” Donghyuck sighed, tossing his phone on Mark’s coffee table.

Mark hummed in agreement, adjusting Donghyuck’s socked feet where they were resting on Mark’s lap. He pulled a throw blanket from the side of the couch, letting out a soft yawn, before spreading it over him and Hyuck. They were seated comfortably now, with both of their backs against opposite arms of the couch, Donghyuck’s legs strewn onto Mark’s lap, and Mark’s own nestled into Donghyuck’s side. 

“It’s snowing really hard now,” Donghyuck murmured, looking past Mark’s head out of the window.    
“Really? I thought it was supposed to hit tomorrow morning,” Mark reached for his phone and checked the weather app, confirming that there were blizzard conditions outside, and if avoidable, no one should leave their homes for the night and part of tomorrow morning. 

“Shit. I should probably get home before it gets worse,” Donghyuck sat up straighter, pulling himself off the couch in a hurry.    
“Wait, Donghyuck,” Mark stumbled over his next few words, face flushing before he even opened his mouth, “You could stay the night.”

Donghyuck stopped from where he had been collecting his phone and wallet. “What?” his voice came out as a high pitched squeak, unlike anything Mark had ever heard come out of his mouth. 

If Mark wasn’t so nervous himself, he would’ve laughed, but the flutters in his stomach prevented him from doing anything but repeat his question, a little more confidently. “You should stay here tonight. It’s bad outside. I wouldn’t want you to get hurt or anything.”

Donghyuck resumed grabbing his things. The next time he spoke, his voice was rougher and he wouldn’t meet Mark’s eyes. “I can take care of myself.”

“Wait- Hyuck! I  _ know _ you can take care of yourself. Do you really need me to spell it out for you?” Donghyuck’s only response was a shrug, prompting Mark to continue. “I want you to stay the night here. Not because it’s dangerous out there. But because I like your company.”

Donghyuck stilled again, closing his eyes for a second before reluctantly dropping his things back on the coffee table. He took a second to regain his composure, giving Mark time to breathe again. Okay, he was staying, Mark told himself.

“You really enjoy my company that much, huh?” Donghyuck smiled amusedly, no trace of any uncertainty as he dropped back onto Mark’s couch, closer to Mark this time, close enough that their shoulders were touching. 

Before Mark could stop himself, he found himself placing a hand on Donghyuck’s thigh. He felt Donghyuck’s leg tense under him. He started to pull his hand back, as his brain finally started working. Donghyuck’s hand grabbed onto Mark’s, and Mark’s brain was sent into overdrive. He could feel his heart pounding, but he was trapped. Mark knew his face was getting red, he had no idea why he had put his hand on Donghyuck’s thigh. Except it didn’t seem like Donghyuck minded. 

When he looked over, Donghyuck was already looking at him, his big eyes meeting his own with a question in them. Mark exhaled slowly before leaning back on the couch, letting his hand rest softly on Hyuck’s thigh. He stared at the TV, hyper aware of every movement that Donghyuck made. Donghyuck’s leg was warm, and it warmed up Mark’s hand in no time, spreading warmth to the rest of Mark’s body, making him want nothing more than to pull the younger close to him and cuddle him. 

“Do you wanna look at the photos now?” Mark asked after a few more minutes, when he couldn’t take the deafening silence anymore.    
Donghyuck nodded, a ghost of a smile tracing his lips. “I wanna see how good I look!”

Mark rolled his eyes but grabbed his laptop and got settled under the blankets with Donghyuck, the two of them settling in together, cuddled up in each other’s warmth.  

It was something that felt so familiar, something that felt so right, even though they had never been in this position or anything of the sort before. It was something that was just comfortable to both boys. 

As Donghyuck and Mark scrolled through the photos, Mark explained why each photo was good or could’ve been better, talking about the different aperture settings and how the depth of field was a little off. Mark was gesturing and explaining in-depth how each different raw photo could’ve turned out better. Donghyuck didn’t understand most of it, but he appreciated the way that Mark was so passionate about his job. There was a shine in the older’s eye that the younger was fixated on, it really made Mark shine, and it brought a foreign feeling in Donghyuck, a cross between admiration and something more intense.  

Mark thought that the photos had turned out really really well. Outdoor photos were more of Mark’s thing, and while he didn’t like taking photos of models as much as other things, he found a different kind of happiness when he wasn’t focused on capturing photos as quickly as possible and just focused on how he could adjust his camera’s settings to get the best photos. 

This shoot had probably been one of the most enjoyable, along with the one that he and the Dreamies went to the beach for; that day had been one of Mark’s best. 

“Your photos are so pretty. I can’t believe that they look this good even without editing,” Donghyuck commented as he traced a finger on the screen.

“My goal is to do the least amount of editing possible. This one will need a tiny touch up to fix the colors, but it’s pretty good,” Mark explained. 

“Do you like working at NCT?” Donghyuck asked abruptly, turning towards Mark, pulling the blankets up to his neck, engulfing him and making him appear smaller than he already was.

Mark found himself nodding. “Yeah, I really do. The people are so sweet and everything is nice.”

“But it’s not your dream, right?” Donghyuck leaned forward, a piercing look in his eyes. Mark felt like Donghyuck was staring straight into his soul, all joking aside, just pure seriousness. 

Mark sighed, looking out the window where white flecks fell to the ground, blanketing the surface of the Earth with a thick cover of white. 

Was Mark truly happy? It was a question he asked himself often enough. 

“It’s not my dream situation, but it’s pretty damn close,” Mark admitted, not meeting Donghyuck’s eyes. 

“So what is your dream then?” Donghyuck asked, his face only a few inches away from Mark’s. Mark could’ve reached out a tiny bit and they’d be touching. He focused on Donghyuck’s eyes, willing himself not to look down at the model’s lips as he waited for his next words, “Taking photos of wildlife in Africa? Being a traveling photographer and documenting all of your journeys? Event photographer?”

Mark found himself smiling at the way Donghyuck had seamlessly pulled Mark into talking about his dreams, and turning it into a lighter conversation. 

“I always wanted to be a photojournalist. Like, documenting stories through my camera. So taking photos of wildlife to raise awareness for them has always been top on my list. Taking photos of places that need resources, people who need help, just, something that’s bigger than me. That’s what I wanna do,” Mark explained, knowing full well how dorky he looked. It still brought a rush of adrenaline to Mark’s heart whenever he approached the subject, as nerdy as he sounded.

Instead of finding amusement on Donghyuck’s face, though, he found admiration instead. “I wish I could do that. Just drop whatever I’m doing now and go straight for my dreams.”

Mark furrowed his eyebrows. He thought Donghyuck was living out his dream; he was one of the top models in the world and he was one of the youngest to be designing his own line. That was nothing short of incredible. 

Yet, Mark noticed that Donghyuck did lack that shine in his eyes when he was talking about modeling. It always showed up when they were talking about Donghyuck’s own line, though. 

“What’s your dream job, then?” Mark watched Donghyuck’s face in the dim light of the night, the unsure look on his face, the way he bit his lip as he thought, the way he fiddled with his hands in his lap. 

“I don’t like modeling. I really want to design my own clothes, sustainable and cruelty-free. And affordable. But I need a name for myself if I wanna get anywhere with designing my own clothes. So modeling it is,” Donghyuck sighed and looked away. “It sounds stupid, I know. I’m a good model, so I should enjoy it while I have the opportunity.”

Mark shook his head. “Why don’t you like modeling? I thought you loved it. It always looks like your having a blast.”

“The lifestyle isn’t for me. Starving myself so I can be stick-thin, acting like a blank slate during photoshoots, I’m basically being a mannequin for designers to use. I know some people really enjoy it, but I hate it. The only times that it only seems to be worth it is at shows, when people are noticing me, but I don’t know if it’s worth starving myself for months.”

Mark realized that it was true, Donghyuck really never looked like he was enjoying himself at any other time besides when they were talking about designs. He had lots of ideas, but as a model, he couldn’t contribute them as much as he wanted to. 

“You should quit,” Mark suggested and Donghyuck shook his head, gaze falling from Mark’s eyes. “Why not?”

“I have no idea where to start with my own ideas. In Paris, I was working with other designers, so it was easier, but just starting by myself is impossible. The line I’m designing right now has other designers’ names attached, which is where I get most of my sales. I need a bigger name to pull it off. There are so many aspiring, talented designers just like me,” Donghyuck sounded discouraged, the first time Mark had heard something akin to insecurity escape Donghyuck’s mouth. “It’s fine, though. This is something I need to do. And not all of it’s bad. I got to reconnect with you because of modeling. I found Renjun and Jisung and Chenle, thanks to NCT.”

Mark smiled faintly. That was true. He was glad he had reconnected with Donghyuck. He was a really good person. Donghyuck shifted, tossing his legs over Mark’s lap again, pulling the blankets tight around them, his hand finding Mark’s again, enveloping it in warmth.

They spent the night talking, more about their dreams, about their friends, about anything that came to mind. They forgot about the cold storm outside, wrapped tightly in the warmth of each other, in the warmth of each others’ delicate words. 

When the boys had finally decided to go to bed, it was well past two, the sky outside was pitch black, but the world was still active outside. Cars were distinctly honking, there were some scattered voices below Mark’s apartment, and the falling snow made the night all the more beautiful.

Inside the apartment, though, it was warm and cozy, and Mark had never thought someone could add so much to his living space. Donghyuck had fallen asleep a while ago, and Mark had just been on his phone, while watching Donghyuck’s chest rise and fall. His mouth was slightly parted, his front two teeth on display. He looked adorable. 

“Donghyuck,” Mark whispered. He didn’t know why he was waking him up when he was clearly exhausted, but he also didn’t want him to wake up with his neck hurting because of the awkward angle he had fallen asleep in. 

The younger boy stirred, groaning a little before blinking his eyes open.    
“Hey,” Mark whispered, unable to stop the soft smile that spread across his face. Donghyuck realized where he was and sat up straighter. He blinked all the sleep out of his eyes and started to stand. 

“Hey, hey, hey. I just woke you up so you wouldn’t be uncomfortable tomorrow morning because you fell asleep in a weird angle,” Mark explained, trying to ease Donghyuck’s worries. “You can take my bed and I’ll take the couch.”

Donghyuck shook his head, pausing as a yawn escaped his mouth, making him look even cuter than he already did. “I’m not stealing your bed. Either I sleep on the couch or we both sleep on the bed.”

Mark sighed, of course Donghyuck had to be so stubborn, even when he was half asleep in the middle of the night. Mark’s stomach was flipping in his stomach at the thought of sharing a bed with Donghyuck, even though the both of them had been cuddling on the couch anyways. 

“Okay, I guess I’m sleeping on the floor,” Mark said and pulled Donghyuck with him to his room, the younger wrapping his arms around Mark’s middle, nuzzling his head into Mark’s shoulder. Donghyuck’s heartbeat was strong and steady, and it calmed Mark to a point where he wanted to fall asleep right where they were standing in the middle of Mark’s room.

“Just sleep on the bed with me. It’s not a big deal. I promise I don’t kick,” Donghyuck pulled his hand out of Mark’s grasp and took a seat on the edge of the older’s bed. It was plenty big, it could fit the two of them just fine. 

Mark debated if he should get in the bed. He wasn’t worried about Donghyuck kicking. Honestly, he would’ve been fine sleeping in the same bed as Donghyuck, but his heart was already beating so fast just seeing Donghyuck with the beginnings of bed hair and the smallest yawns leaving his mouth. He didn’t know if his heart would survive the night sleeping right next to him. Donghyuck peered up at him with doe eyes, flashing a soft smile that made Mark’s heart stutter.

“Okay,” he relented, grabbing a pair of sleeping clothes. He took out another set, grey sweats and a short sleeved black top. “This okay for you?”

Donghyuck looked mildly alarmed, a red flush spreading across his cheeks. “Y-yeah,” he stammered. Mark looked at him with confusion, but decided that Donghyuck was probably just really tired. 

He handed the younger the clothes and they both got changed silently, before sliding under the covers, both of them on opposite sides of the bed, facing away from each other. 

They both laid in the dark, quiet, nothing but the sound of their breathing filling up the room, before Donghyuck spoke, his voice lilting with sleep. “Do you miss Canada?”

“A lot,” Mark responded, his voice a hushed hum, just barely audible. “Sometimes I miss it a lot, sometimes I don’t think about it. I really miss my friends and family there.”

“But you like Seoul, right?” he mumbled, turning to face Mark. 

Mark hummed in confirmation. “I love Seoul. Both places represent a different part of me, and sometimes I wanna leave Seoul and start completely over. But I’d never do that.”

Donghyuck’s breathing had started to even out again, his eyes closed. Still, he managed to drawl, “Why not?”

Mark turned to face Donghyuck, pulling the covers up to his chin. “The people here are too precious to me.”

The only response was Donghyuck’s light breathing, and before Mark thought about it too much, he reached out. He pushed back a few strands of soft brown hair that had been in Donghyuck’s eyes, smoothing them back. 

“Goodnight, Donghyuck. Sweet dreams,” Mark whispered into the dark. 

 

*

 

When Mark awoke, he found his arms wrapped around Donghyuck’s middle, the younger still asleep, his own legs tangled with the older’s. The two of them were entwined together, and the sun rays shone down on Donghyuck, depicting him in a softer light than usual. Mark felt a little awkward, but this position was more comfortable than Mark thought possible. He didn’t want to leave, didn’t want to take his arms off of Donghyuck. He was happy as he looked down at Donghyuck.

Donghyuck looked calm in his sleep, no playful grin or challenging smirk. Just his mouth partly open, and ruffled hair splayed out over his forehead. Mark thought he looked really cute. He fell back asleep, warm and content, arms wrapped around Hyuck tighter than before. 

 

“Mark,” Donghyuck whispered, touching a light hand to the older’s face.

Mark mumbled incoherently and turned around, pushing Hyuck’s hands away from his face as he nuzzled back into his pillow. 

“Mark,” Donghyuck whined, and Mark could picture the pout on his lips. “Wake up. I made you food!”   
The older boy opened his eyes, squinting as sunlight shone into his eyes. A figure was blocking the sun, and as he opened his eyes again, he realized that Donghyuck was sitting on the edge of the bed, a thoughtful expression on his face. 

“Morning, sunshine!” Donghyuck said cheerily, pulling Mark out of his meaningless staring at the younger. 

“Mm,” Mark pulled himself up in a sitting position. He stretched, hearing the crack and pops of his back as he twisted his torso. A big yawn made its way out of his mouth before he looked at Donghyuck. “Why are you already up? It’s still early.”

“It’s 9, Mark. Not that early. Besides, I couldn’t sleep,” Donghyuck didn’t meet Mark’s eyes, and Mark thought he saw a pink smattering on his cheeks. “So I made breakfast!”

He gestured to the tray that was sitting on Mark’s night table. There was a plate with some eggs, bacon, and toast, along with a cup of coffee. 

“You can cook?” Mark asked. He hadn’t pegged Donghyuck as the type who was good at cooking. Mark knew he himself was horrible at cooking without direct assistance.

Donghyuck shrugged, a sheepish smile spreading across his face. “A little. Eggs and bacon are the one thing I can actually make well.”

“Well, I’m not eating alone. Help me eat this?” Mark asked, setting the tray on his lap, looking up at Donghyuck with an expectant gaze. 

Donghyuck nodded and joined Mark on the bed, taking care not to jostle Mark or the food. Mark grabbed a fork and tried some of the eggs, taking a bite of toast with it. It was good, better than Mark had expected.    
“Wow, you can make eggs and bacon well,” Mark looked at Donghyuck who just smiled.    
“I can’t cook anything else, but if you need a source of protein, just come to me! I’ll have you covered,” Donghyuck laughed, breaking off a piece of Mark’s toast and shoving it in his mouth. 

They ate happily, enjoying the morning sun coming in through Mark’s window, warming the whole room up. Donghyuck’s breakfast was really good, and the coffee was even better. Donghyuck credited his high school job as a barista in a cafe, which Mark faintly remembered insistently avoiding in high school. 

After breakfast, the two of them ventured out of Mark’s apartment, wanting to check out how bad the blizzard had been last night. There were only a few cars on the roads, since most roads had a layer of ice on it. The whole area had been covered with fluffy white snow, making everything look prettier and more festive. 

Mark felt something hit his back, and he turned to see Donghyuck with some snow in his hand. He scoffed, before picking up some of his own snow and molding it into a ball, tossing it at Donghyuck. It hit him square in his chest, his mouth dropping open as the snow started melting through his light jacket. 

“Oh, you are so on,” Donghyuck yelled with the playful smile Mark loved so much, and started chasing Mark, throwing snowball after snowball at the older. 

 

*

 

The end of the day was when Donghyuck could finally go home, freshly showered, having drank a warm cup of cocoa, and bundled up in Mark’s clothes. By the time the roads were clear and it was safe to drive, it was almost 6, and the sun had already set, leaving the sky a shade of dark blue. 

“We should all meet up for the release of the line,” Donghyuck said as he gathered his shoes and phone and wallet. 

Mark nodded, before faltering. “Wait, it releases on the 14th, right?”

Donghyuck nodded. “Yeah! It’s a Thursday morning. Renjun, Lele, and Jisung are gonna sleep over at mine and we’re gonna count it down with the fans. We should invite Jeno and Jaemin and make it a whole friend thing!”

“I’m not gonna be here for the release,” Mark said guiltily and looked down, not having realized that he would be missing the release of the line. He was a bad friend, he should’ve planned this out better. He wanted to be there to support both Donghyuck and Renjun, and of course, Chenle and Jisung.

“What? Are you going out of town for a shoot?” Donghyuck asked, looking just the tiniest bit crestfallen, clearly trying to mask it. 

“I’m going to Canada for a few weeks for a shoot. It’s a big opportunity, and I was so excited for it that I completely forgot that release day was also on the 14th,” Mark gauged Donghyuck’s reaction, hoping that the younger boy wasn’t too disappointed. 

His lips were downturned, but that was the only sign that this was even affecting him. Donghyuck was a master at hiding the feelings that he wanted to keep secret. 

“I can cancel, though. Or postpone the trip. I should be here to support you guys for the release,” Mark suggested, already grabbing his phone to plan accordingly. 

“No! No, Mark, no. You don’t have to do that. It’s just a new release. You’ll still be able to see it in Canada. It’s fine. I promise,” Donghyuck reached out and put a hand over Mark’s, over the one that was holding his phone. Mark looked up, meeting Donghyuck’s earnest and comforting eyes. 

“I don’t want to miss the release,” Mark’s gaze dropped back down to his feet, feeling a furrow form between his eyebrows. He felt so shitty, he had planned this trip so quickly and clearly not well enough if he was missing his friends’ release.

Donghyuck drew his bottom lip between his teeth, looking past Mark as he debated whether he should say anything. 

“You could make it up to me?” came his slightly unsure voice, smaller and more uncertain than usual. Mark blinked, not processing what he had said. Make it up to him? Like take him out to dinner?

“We could get dinner sometime,” Mark spoke, forcing himself to look Donghyuck in the eye. Mark’s mom had always told him that if he wanted someone to see his true feelings, he should always look them in the eye when telling them something that he really wanted them to understand. And right now, he really wanted Donghyuck to get the underlying message behind his words. 

Donghyuck seemed to get the message well enough, because he looked down, a cute smile spreading across his face. His cheeks were flushed, and he looked awfully close to giddy. 

He nodded, not meeting Mark’s eyes. After a few seconds, he straightened up, making eye contact, “This is happening before you leave, though, okay?”

Mark found himself nodding, a smile of his own shining through. “Yeah. I’ll text you, okay? Get home safely, Donghyuck.”

“I had a good time yesterday and today. Thank you, Mark,” Donghyuck paused, a hand on Mark’s door. 

“I did too, Hyuck,” he said, feeling the sudden urge to kiss the younger boy for being so so  _ so _ cute. 

As Mark realized what he was thinking, his eyes widened a tiny bit and his heart started beating faster. He rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly, hoping Donghyuck couldn’t detect the change in his feelings. Shit, he really did want to kiss Donghyuck. 

The younger waved, an endearing smile on his face. Mark waved back, watching his form retreat until he turned the corner, out of Mark’s apartment complex. 

Mark still felt bad for not being able to be there for the release, but there was a fluttery feeling in Mark’s stomach every time he thought about getting dinner with Donghyuck. There was just something about Donghyuck. Or, well, it was more like, everything about Donghyuck made Mark feel this way. Like his cute laugh. Or his sweet voice. Or his loyal personality. Or the countless moles spattered across his skin. 

Mark closed the door, flopping onto his bed, thoughts of Donghyuck whirling around his mind. 

 

*

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> leave a comment if you'd like!! hope you liked this chapter !!! follow me on twt @ honeyshyuck if you wanna scream about nct with me !!
> 
> ash xx


	5. chapter five

“What if it doesn’t work out? What if I end up ruining Jeno and Jaemin’s relationship?” Renjun brought his hands up to his mouth, biting on his nails.

“Stop that,” Mark pulled Renjun’s hand away from his mouth. “And stop thinking like that. It’s worth a try, okay? You’ll feel a lot better after you just tell them. Don’t worry so much, alright?”

Renjun nodded, the worried look ever present on his face. He brought up his coffee to his mouth with shaky hands, taking a small sip. 

The two of them sat in silence for a few minutes, Renjun clearly sorting things out in his head, and Mark was thinking about his upcoming dinner with Donghyuck. 

He was so nervous. It was a few days away, but it had consumed every thought on his mind lately. What would Donghyuck wear? Would he wear makeup? Would he be disappointed that Mark wouldn’t be there for the release? How fancy should the restaurant be? Would Donghyuck want to come back to his apartment afterwards?

His worries were those akin to a high schooler going on his first date, but Mark couldn’t help it. Since he had admitted that there were feelings on his end of the friendship, worrying was all he could do. Not that he had delved into thinking about his feelings at all. In fact, he had been trying to distract himself so he didn’t have to deal with those messy feelings of his. 

“What’s up with you and Donghyuck?” Renjun asked, looking up from his cup of coffee. 

“What? Nothing’s up, we’re finally friends, though,” Mark smiled, remembering how Donghyuck had cooked breakfast for him.

“With the way you’re smiling right now, you’re definitely not just friends,” Renjun pointed out, smiling knowingly at Mark. 

“Are you trying to say that we’re more than friends?” Mark asked, eyebrows shooting up. “You were there when we argued for the whole day during that photoshoot.”

“Hate is awfully close to love,” Renjun stated nonchalantly, tapping his fingers on the side of his cup.   
“We- well, we- what? No, no, we’re just . . . acquaintances,” Mark stammered, wondering where the hell Renjun had even gotten that idea. 

“Oh really? Is that why Donghyuck texted me last night wondering what he should wear for dinner with you Friday night? You guys are just acquaintances that casually go on dates, is that it?” Renjun grinned triumphantly, shaking his phone in Mark’s face. 

“Date?” Mark spluttered, his face going bright red as he lowered the cup of warm coffee that he had raised halfway to his mouth. 

“Yes, date, Mark. Taking someone out to dinner and getting wildly embarrassed about it usually points to a date. That involves feelings,” Renjun spoke as if Mark was in grade school and was confused about the concept of feelings. It wasn’t far off, if he was being honest.

“I don’t have feelings for Donghyuck!” Mark denied, knowing that that sentence wasn’t completely honest. 

“Okay,” Renjun said simply, the knowing look still displayed on his face. “Tell me that same thing when you’re in Canada and you miss him really bad. More than you miss the rest of us.”

Mark knew that that was inevitable, he would miss Donghyuck and the rest of his friends when he was in Canada, but he wouldn’t miss Donghyuck more than usual. “Of course I’ll miss him. We’re friends now. I’ll miss all you guys the same.”

Renjun nodded slowly, clearly not buying it. “Sure, Mark. Whatever you say.”

“Oh there’s Jeno and Jaemin!” Mark pointed frantically at the window where the two boys were indeed approaching the coffee shop, internally thanking them for their perfect entrance time.

Renjun glanced at the window before swinging his head back around, staring at his hands like he was trying to memorize them. “Why are you so nervous? It’ll probably go better than you expect.”

“Fuck,” Renjun moaned. “Quick, help me hide so I can escape before they see me.” He started to stand, before Mark pulled him back down, eliciting a huff from the smaller. 

“Stop trying to put this off, Junnie. You know you’re ready, okay? You can do this. You’re Huang Renjun, what can’t you do?”

“Protect my heart from getting broken, apparently,” he muttered as he snatched his hand back from Mark. He laid his head down on the table as the bell rang, signaling that Jeno and Jaemin were inside the shop.

Mark waved the two boys over, wide smiles on both of their faces. They dropped right off when they saw Renjun, head down on the table. 

“Renjun?” Jeno asked, a hint of worry already sneaking into his voice as he crouched next to the aforementioned boy. 

It was so clear how much Jeno cared for Renjun, and Mark just didn’t understand how Renjun could still say that they were only friends. The affection the two had for him was so obvious, if Renjun could only open his eyes and actually see what was going on.

“Injunnie,” Jaemin’s voice was sweet as he crouched on the other side of Renjun’s chair, placing a hand on Renjun’s arm, “What’s wrong? Did something happen?”  

Renjun made a clear sound of despair, sounding almost like a wounded animal, before lifting his head and breathing out. 

“Hey, guys,” Renjun managed to keep his voice from breaking, and attempted a smile that looked more like a wince instead. 

“Are you okay?” Jeno immediately took a seat next to him, wrapping an arm around his shoulders. 

Jaemin sat next to Mark, across from Jeno, and reached out, placing a comforting hand on top of Renjun’s. “What’s going on?”

Mark suddenly felt like he was intruding. This was too much for him. This was a conversation that Renjun needed to have with Jeno and Jaemin, and Mark didn’t need to be here, as much as Renjun would beg to differ. They needed their privacy, and as much as Mark loved all three boys, he didn’t need a front row seat to their conversations.

“I’ll be right back, okay? I’ll give you guys some space,” Mark quickly removed himself from the situation, and Jeno’s expression quickly turned to alarmed as he turned to Renjun. 

“Renjun, what’s wrong? Do you have something to tell us?” his voice sounded so worried, and Jaemin’s face mirrored Jeno’s. 

Mark stepped up and moved away from the table, giving the three some space. He stayed close enough to be able to hear what was going on, if he needed to get Renjun out quickly, but he didn’t want to intrude too much. 

He pulled out his phone, a guise, so he didn’t look too lonely. 

“Injun, we’re worried. Is something wrong?” Jaemin’s sweet voice came through.

“No, no, don’t be worried,” Renjun said quietly, his gaze fixated on his cup of coffee. “I just have to tell you two something. It’s been eating at me, and I just need to let it out.”

“Go ahead, Junnie. Say whatever you need to,” Jeno rubbed the smaller boy’s back, letting him gather his thoughts.

Mark held his breath as he watched Renjun look both the boys in the eyes. He made eye contact with Mark, and the older boy sent his most comforting look his way. He believed in Renjun. He’d get through his perfectly okay. 

“I’m just gonna say this, so just hear me out. You might feel disgusted or creeped out, which is fine, but just let me say everything, okay?” 

Jeno and Jaemin exchanged worried looks over Renjun’s head but nodded, staying quiet as Renjun began to talk. 

“So, I really really really like the two of you. Of course I like you as friends, but I like you more than that. Jeno, I’ve had feelings for you for as long as we’ve been friends, as long as we’ve been modeling together. And those feelings just increased when you left NCT, because it made me realize how much I missed you and cared about you. And Jaemin, I like you too. You made me feel so special the day we met, and every time we’ve hung out after that hasn’t been different. You’re an amazing person who deserves someone as perfect as Jeno,” Renjun’s voice wavered at the end, as he laid himself bare for Jeno and Jaemin to see. 

Mark walked a few steps further away. He didn’t want to intrude on a moment like this. Instead, he scrolled through his phone mindlessly, his thoughts focused solely on Renjun’s situation. He looked up to see Renjun still talking, with both Jeno and Jaemin’s faces unreadable. There wasn’t disgust on either face, though, and Mark thought that was a win. 

After a few minutes trying to decode their facial expressions, Mark inched back towards the table, unable to tell whether things were going well or not. 

Renjun still looked close to tears, Jeno looked like he was in awe, and Jaemin looked plain confused. One of Renjun’s hands was gripped in Jeno’s hand, and Renjun was clutching at Jaemin’s hand with the other.

“. . . willing to try it, if you’re up for it,” Jeno was saying, looking at Renjun with earnest. Renjun’s eyes were blown wide, his jaw dropping. 

Jeno turned to Jaemin, who also looked a little confused. He quickly overcame it, a little smile gracing his lips. “I wanna try it too, if you’re interested, Renjun.”

Renjun bit his lip, looking away. His eyes met Mark’s, who quickly shot him a thumbs up. Renjun sighed before turning back, the two sides of him clearly warring against each other. 

“Okay, I’m willing to try.”

Jaemin let out a little squeak and Jeno looked ecstatic, his eye smile taking over his entire face. “Really? You’re not joking around?”

Renjun shook his head. “I’m sure. I wanna try this. We should talk more later, but for now, this is good. Mark, come back! You look so lonely standing there by yourself.”

The three of them laughed as they watched Mark stand there sheepishly by himself. He closed his phone and headed back to the table, a wave of relief flushing over him as he realized that Renjun would be okay. As would Jeno and Jaemin.

“Did you guys figure things out?” he dropped back into the empty seat, finishing off his coffee, now cold and still overly sweet.

“We’re gonna try going on a date. All together. And I guess we’ll just see where it goes from there,” Jeno smiled, and Renjun and Jaemin nodded eagerly. Jaemin placed a hand over Renjun’s, and Mark already felt like he was gonna be sick from how sweet they were.

“I’m happy for you guys,” he smiled, turning to Renjun. “And I told you things would be better once you told them. What did I say?”

“Shut up, Mark. You’re going on a date that you won’t admit is a date, so don’t come at me,” Renjun scoffed. 

“You’re what?” Jaemin spluttered, as Jeno spat his coffee onto the napkin laying on the table. Jeno coughed, chest heaving, and Jaemin quickly rubbed his back, eyebrows furrowing in worry. 

“You good?” Renjun asked, once Jeno had stopped coughing. 

Jeno managed to nod, before turning to Mark. “You’re what?”

Renjun nodded in satisfaction. “It’s true. He and Donghyuck are going on a dinner date before he goes to Canada. And they already spent the night together. And had a snowball fight. They’re already basically dating.”

Jeno’s eyes were comically wide, as he looked back and forth from Mark to Renjun.

“We’re talking about the same guy right? Lee Donghyuck? New model? Mark’s old classmate? Super cute, slightly annoying? The one he hated with all his guts? What the hell, Mark?”

“That’s exactly the one, Jeno! They don’t hate each other anymore. It’s quite the opposite, honestly,” Renjun shrugged, and Mark shot him a glare. 

“It’s not a date,” Mark reiterated, his voice sounding dangerously close to a whine.

“I’m so happy for you guys! Do you know what you’re wearing yet? Where are you taking him? Is it casual or fancy? Fancy, right? Ooh, tell me what you’re wearing. You have to look good. Donghyuck will probably look stunning, I’ve seen the outfits he can put together, they’re flawless. You have to look at least half as good,” Jaemin rambled away, his voice growing louder and more animated with every question.    
“No, I don’t know, probably casual, yes, his outfits are pretty nice, and hey! I do look half as good as Donghyuck,” Mark pouted. “And it’s not a date, so nothing to be happy about. I’m missing the release so I wanted to make it up to him. That’s all.”

“Oh my god, it’s a fucking date,” Jaemin repeated to Jeno and Mark just groaned, putting his head down on the table, letting the three converse about what Mark should do with his hair, how he could woo Donghyuck, and different outfit ideas. 

 

*

 

“Fuck, what if it’s really a date?” Mark asked Jeno. 

“Do you want it to be a date?” Jeno asked, watching Mark pace back and forth across his room, hand running through his hair almost frantically. 

“I don’t know, I don’t fucking know. One second I hate him because he’s so fucking annoying, the next second he’s all cute and sweet and makes me feel so special, and the next I want to kiss him, and-” Jeno cut him off, and Mark realized exactly what he had said. Kiss him? That was new.

“I think you have your answer, then. Love and hate are on completely different sides of the spectrum, but they’re honestly really similar,” Jeno took a seat on Mark’s bed. 

“Fuck, wait. No. No, I don’t like Donghyuck like that?” Mark wondered, feeling even more confused. He tossed himself onto his bed, landing next to where Jeno sat. 

“Why wouldn’t you want it to be a date? I think we both know that you have feelings for him. And he’s a really nice guy, he’s not gonna lead you on or anything,” Jeno stood and started rifling through Mark’s closet, trying to help him find a satisfactory outfit.    
“I know,” Mark sighed. “I just don’t understand where these feelings came from, I guess. We spent so long hating each other, I used to cringe at the mention of his name, and now I get a warm feeling in my stomach when I think of him. I’m scared. I bet he doesn’t feel the same anyway. I shouldn’t get my hopes up,” he joined Jeno in finding an outfit, carding through the different button-ups he had. “It’s crazy that a month ago I would’ve told you that Donghyuck is the most annoying person on the planet, and now I’m thinking about kissing him. Why would his feelings towards me change? I don’t think he’ll ever be able to like me romantically.”

“I think he does feel the same. But you should just see how tonight goes. I think the both of you are gonna overthink this and complicate it when you should just be enjoying each other’s company,” Jeno pulled out a white t-shirt and pulled out Mark’s blue denim jacket along with it. “How about this?”

Mark nodded, it was a cute outfit. He didn’t want to be overly dressed up, since they weren’t going anywhere too special, but he didn’t want to wear something that didn’t look good on him either. Especially not when Donghyuck’s outfit would be top notch. 

“Pair this with your black skinny jeans. The really ripped ones, I bet Donghyuck would like seeing you in those,” Jeno smirked. “It really shows off the ass you don’t have.”

“Shut the fuck up, Jeno. He’s not gonna be looking at my ass, anyways,” he muttered the last part under his breath, shoving Jeno into the closet door.    
“Ow, fuck off,” Jeno rubbed his shoulder, sending a hurt look over, looking like a kicked puppy. 

Mark just rolled his eyes but proceeded to find his ripped jeans. 

Once he was fully dressed, Jeno sent him off with a good luck and a suggestive wink, to which Mark just flipped him off.

“Don’t kiss him on the first date!” Jeno called after him with a giggle.

“Fuck off,” Mark lifted a hand in a goodbye, walking over to his car. 

 

*

 

“You look cute today,” Donghyuck said with a grin as he slid into Mark’s car, his voice a little soft but strong in all the right places. 

Mark’s cheeks heated up, and he smiled back at the younger. “You look cute too, Hyuck.”

Donghyuck blushed, looking down at his shoes. He was wearing a light blue pinstripe button down shirt, paired with fitted white jeans. His outfit was adorable, and his light brown hair looked fluffy and soft. Mark thought it was the cutest outfit he’d ever worn.

Donghyuck sighed, looking out the window. “You okay?” Mark asked, looking over at the unusually silent boy. 

The younger boy nodded, head still downcast, unusually silent. Mark furrowed his eyebrows but didn’t push, not wanting to invade.  

“You still want to go to the jjajangmyeon place, right?” Mark double checked, his voice soft as he asked the younger. 

Donghyuck nodded silently, not offering a wise remark or even a smile. Mark started to feel worried and uneasy. He hoped the younger wasn’t mad at him for something. 

The rest of the car ride was spent silently and though the silence was comfortable, Mark would’ve preferred some conversation. 

 

“Okay, what’s wrong, Donghyuck? I can tell that something’s up,” Mark finally sighed after the two of them had been sitting in silence for almost 20 minutes. Donghyuck had barely touched his bowl, only a few bites taken. Mark had almost finished half of his food as he watched Donghyuck sit there silently, staring out the window next to their booth.

“I-just,” Donghyuck started, then closed his eyes. He sucked in a deep breath, looking worried as hell. Mark leaned closer, starting to feel more worried, and put a hand on top of Donghyuck’s. 

The younger’s eyes snapped open, slightly alarmed, then he shifted his gaze towards his bowl of noodles. “We’re friends, right?”

Mark sat back. “Yeah?” he had no idea why Donghyuck would be this torn up over whether or not the two of them were friends. 

“And we’re not going to go back to hating each other when you get back from Canada?” Donghyuck looked up, worry evident on his face, looking so small and distraught. Mark sighed and shook his head. 

“No. We’re friends now, Hyuck. We’re gonna talk all the time, okay? We’ll facetime and text, and I’ll be back before you know it. And then we can hang out again. I’m really sorry that I’m missing the release day.”

He looked down, before feeling Hyuck squeeze his hand. “I just don’t want to go back to not talking.”

“We won’t. Promise,” Mark stuck out his pinky finger, and Donghyuck linked his with it. “Now, what can I do to get that smile back on your face?”

Donghyuck smiled softly before finally,  _ finally _ , digging into his bowl, the two of them eating to their heart’s content, the conversation switching to a lighter topic, Donghyuck telling Mark about his favorite pieces he’d ever designed.

 

“What are you staring at?” Donghyuck asked Mark, looking at the older as they walked down the street from the parking garage, heading back to Mark’s apartment. 

Mark just shrugged, loving the way the moonlight accentuated Donghyuck’s features, making him look more god-like. The younger was all bundled up, winter coat zipped all the way up, hands stuffed in his pockets, and a fluffy beanie to top it all off. The curves and planes of his face were still visible, the jacket and beanie doing nothing to protect them from the cold. 

Mark wanted to take the younger’s cheeks between his hands and maybe press warm kisses to them.

“Hey, back in high school, what did you think of me?” Donghyuck asked after a few more minutes, looking over at Mark.

Mark thought about it. The first thing that came to his mind was annoying, but he didn’t always think of Donghyuck like that. He was pretty sure he wanted to be his friend in middle school.

He just shrugged, “I’m pretty sure I thought you were the most annoying person in our grade.”

Donghyuck huffed, “Seriously?” and nudged Mark’s shoulder with his own. 

“What did you think of me?”

Donghyuck pursed his lips as he thought. “I thought you were cool, just like everyone else. You were good at everything you tried, and everyone liked you. So I wanted to be your friend.”

“Really? I thought you hated me even before I was dating Soojin,” Mark looked over at the younger boy, who was staring insistently at his feet. 

He suddenly felt a hand slip into his, their fingers lacing together. He swung his head over to Donghyuck, who was already looking at him with a soft smile on his face. It seemed wildly out of place with their conversation, yet it fit right in. Donghyuck’s hand was warm against Mark’s cooler one, and he let himself relax as they swung their hands in between them. Their hands were about the same size, so they fit together perfectly. 

“I really really disliked you when you broke up with Soojin. I guess I just felt like you were playing with her heart back then. And I just didn’t get why you would break up with her so I thought you were just being selfish and not wanting to put in the effort of keeping a relationship. But of course, you were right,” Donghyuck’s voice got quieter as he got to the end, and Mark felt him pull his hand back, like he was unsure about them holding hands. 

Mark pulled Donghyuck closer, their shoulders brushing as they walked down the sidewalk, the cold weather making them huddle even closer than usual. 

“But I never hated you,” Donghyuck spoke again, looking over at Mark with a look of pure determination. The words made Mark’s chest warm; it was a relief, to know that he wasn’t hated. 

“I’m glad,” Mark said. “I never hated you either. I thought you were stuck up. In high school and when we first started talking. You were just so confident in the way that you insulted me, it seemed like you really hated me. And you always stuck your nose in my business and gave me your opinions, even when I didn’t want them.”

Donghyuck pursed his lips as they crossed the street. “I’m sorry about that. You just made me so mad.”

Mark shrugged. “It was entertainment for the both of us. I’m glad we’re over that, though.”

“It’s much better being my friend than hating me. You can see my beautiful personality really shine through up close,” Donghyuck pointed out and Mark laughed, the twinkling sound filling the air, making the younger boy smile.

“Anyway, when we get back to yours, I want ice cream. You have ice cream, right?” Donghyuck inquired. He shot Mark a look that made the older think that there was only one right answer. 

“Who doesn’t? I have Oreo, chocolate chip cookie dough, strawberry cheesecake, and I might have some plain chocolate,” Mark listed off, watching Donghyuck’s eyes grow comically wide. 

“Damn that sounds good. I bet it’ll taste better all mixed together,” Donghyuck grinned as Mark pretended to gag. 

“Oh, that’s so gross,” Mark’s face was turning a light shade of green and Donghyuck laughed, clearly enjoying the reaction he had gotten out of Mark. 

 

As the sky got darker, the day drew to a close, with Mark dropping Donghyuck off back to his own apartment. Donghyuck had been his usual witty self the rest of the night, no sign of any insecurity on his features as they stuffed their faces with ice cream while watching horror movies.

“Text me when you get to Canada, okay? And send me some pictures of moose if you find any,” Donghyuck instructed sternly as Mark rolled to a stop in front of Donghyuck’s apartment. 

“Okay, okay, I will,” Mark chuckled. “I can’t wait for the release. I’ll be waiting with you, just in Canada.”

Donghyuck nodded. His gaze flickered down to Mark’s lips then back up to his eyes, as if he was debating whether or not to go for it. Mark decided to go for it. 

He leaned in, slowly enough that Donghyuck could push him away if he wanted, his eyes fluttering shut as his face got closer in proximity to Donghyuck’s. Mark stopped a few centimeters away from the younger’s lips, feeling unsure. He could feel Donghyuck’s warm breath on his lips, and he lifted a hand to cradle the side of Donghyuck’s face.

Donghyuck closed the gap, softly leaning over the center console and pressing his lips to Mark’s. Donghyuck’s lips were soft and supple, his breath warm on Mark’s face and he kissed him slowly. Just like that, Donghyuck pulled back, surveying Mark’s face in the dim light from Mark’s car. 

Mark ran his tongue over his lips, wondering if that had really just happened. His mind had seemed to stop functioning. Still, he leaned back in, placing a hand on the younger’s cheek as he slotted their lips back together. Their second kiss was still sweet, slow and soft and perfect. 

When they broke apart, the two were breathing a little heavier, though a shy smile spread across Donghyuck’s face, his lips kiss-swollen and hair ruffled in the cutest way possible. The tips of his ears were painted a pretty pink, and his eyes were averted to the floor. He was the epitome of a shy boy, though Mark had never pinned Donghyuck as one to be shy after kissing someone.    
He knew his own cheeks were flushed, his hair probably just as much of a mess. Mark traced Donghyuck’s jaw, letting his eyes roam the younger’s face, committing every detail to memory to hold close for the next couple weeks. 

“I should go,” Donghyuck mumbled on Mark’s lips, after a few more minutes of the two boys kissing. 

Mark nodded, already missing the warmth he had been receiving from Donghyuck. “Okay,” he pressed one last kiss to his cheek, squeezing his hand tight before letting go. 

“Night, Donghyuck,” he called as Donghyuck started to shut the door.    
“Night, Mark! Get home safe,” he grinned as he turned, bounding up the stairs and into his apartment building. 

Mark leaned his head back, a wide smile splayed as he turned out of Donghyuck’s neighborhood, the feel of Donghyuck’s lips on his lingering on his, and the younger’s twinkly laugh reverberating through his head. 

 

*

 

The flight to Canada was long, about ten hours, and Mark was stuck thinking about Donghyuck for almost all ten. He had left early morning, and Donghyuck had been up to send him a goodbye text when Mark let him know that he was leaving. The message had been short, a simple ‘have fun in Canada and don’t forget about me’ but it still made Mark smile as he made his way through the busy airport. Donghyuck had told him how much he would miss the older in another way.

Renjun had everyone over at his apartment for dinner last night, all of the boys telling Mark how much they would miss him, and before he had left, Donghyuck had pulled him aside and kissed him again, quickly and softly, and more passionate than that night in Mark’s car. 

Mark still didn’t know what they were, but his feelings were too intense to just brush aside. And anyways, Mark already missed the younger boy. There were two days until the launch of the new line, and Mark knew that Donghyuck would be busy with outfit fittings for the show coming up next weekend. Before leaving, Mark had made Donghyuck promise to text him everyday, to not forget about him, and though Donghyuck looked at Mark like he was crazy, he agreed.

Now, Mark was on his way to his mother’s house. He had made plans to see his mom for a few days before heading to Quebec. 

Sitting in the taxi was exhilarating, he hadn’t been in Canada for years, and coming back always filled him with some kind of nostalgia. It was snowing, as if celebrating Mark’s arrival to the country. Vancouver was cold, but not as cold as it used to be when Mark was a child. As the taxi sped past restaurants, offices, and various skyscrapers, Mark tilted his head outside to observe everything going on around him. 

He was so grateful to be back home. Yet he already missed his friends back home. Especially a certain model who had managed to worm his way into Mark’s heart and create a home there.

 

*

 

Once Mark had gotten settled, having talked to his mother all day to combat jet-lag, he retreated to bed, feeling warm and content. His mom had made a mix of his favorite Korean and Canadian foods, and he honestly felt like bursting into tears right then and there. He hadn’t realized how bad he had missed his mom until he came home.

“What’s that smile for?” Mark’s mom asked as she came into his old room, where Mark was sitting on the bed with his texts to Donghyuck open. 

Mark just shrugged, unable to stifle the smile. “Remember Donghyuck? From back in high school?”

Mark’s mom laughed, “Don’t tell me you two met each other in Seoul again,” when Mark’s face remained impassive, she laughed harder. “Wanna hear something funny?”

Mark nodded, not knowing where his mom was going with this. She took a seat on the bed next to Mark, laying a comforting hand on his knee.

“When you two were in high school, I thought you two would make the perfect couple. Whenever we saw the two of you together, I would always ask your dad if he thought that the two of you would make a good couple. He would always laugh at me, but I always thought there was something there,” the older woman had a gentle smile on her face as she remembered her late husband. 

The mention of Mark’s father suddenly brought tears to Mark’s eyes. It was the first time he had been back here since his father had passed away, after all the funeral procedures, after the two horrible months Mark had spent crying with his mother everyday in this very house. Mark’s mom’s face crumpled as she saw Mark’s tears, a sympathetic look taking over. 

“Mark, it’s okay. Come here,” she pulled him into her arms, wrapping them tight around him. “You can tell me whatever’s going on, you know. I know you think you’re old and an adult, but you’ll always be my baby. And I’m here for you whenever you need me.”

Mark’s eyes fluttered close and a few tears leaked, dripping down his face, leaving a warm trail behind. “I miss Dad.”

“I know, baby. I miss him too. He’d be so proud of you. You’re following your dreams, and I know your father is proud of you.”

Mark pulled back, wiping at his eyes before looking back at his mom. “How’d you know that Hyuck and I would like each other? We really hated each other in high school.”

A flush spread up his face as he realized that he had said that he liked Donghyuck out loud. It was the first time he had admitted his feelings out loud. It was fitting that it was to his mother, though. His mom sent him a knowing smile as she watched Mark react to his confession.

“You two used to be friends, and I always thought that it would become something more. But then you started dating Soojin, who was a nice girl, but when you and Donghyuck were friends, it was unbreakable. You two were the best of friends. And when you hated each other, you hated each other so strongly. Your feelings for each other were always so strong, so unbreakable, whether it was hate or love. It only made sense that if the two of you were ever more than friends, it would be an unbreakable relationship.”

“You really think that?” Mark had no idea his mom had even paid that much attention to the two of them.

“Anyone with eyes can see that, Mark,” she teased, eliciting a small pout from Mark. “So what’s going on with the two of you? How did you guys start talking again? Don’t leave your poor mother in the dark, Mark Lee.”

And so Mark explained, how Donghyuck had managed to slip into Mark’s heart when he was so dead set on keeping him away. It was another way Donghyuck had surprised him. He didn’t expect his feelings to be reciprocated. He wasn’t sure what they were, but he was sure they were  _ something _ . That had to count for something. 

 

*

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hope you liked this chapter!! leave a comment if you'd like, and if you want, you can follow me on twt @ honeyshyuck !!!  
> have a good day!!


	6. chapter six

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> mark and donghyuck face a little trouble in paradise, but it's quickly resolved, leading to a bigger realization. plus some fluff!

The day of the release of the new line was a big day. It was the first day of Mark’s Quebec shoot. And he got up at 9 in the morning and called Donghyuck, before he got on with his day, just to make sure that the younger knew that Mark was thinking of him. 

“Hello?” Donghyuck’s groggy voice greeted him, and Mark could just imagine the way Hyuck was probably squinting his eyes in the dark, his hair ruffled and messy, clothes strewn messily over his body. 

“Morning, Donghyuck,” Mark said cheerily, a smile weaseling its way onto his face.

“Mark! Hi,” Donghyuck’s voice cleared up, still a little rough around the edges, but sweet nonetheless. 

“Are you excited for the release? Did I wake you up? Shit, I probably did. I just wanted to let you know that I was thinking of you in case I didn’t have time to check my phone later in the day,” Mark started rambling, feeling guilty that he had woken him up. He himself already had a messed up sleeping schedule. 

“Mark, it’s alright. I’d rather talk to you right now,” Donghyuck said soothingly, and Mark’s cheeks heated up. Jesus, Donghyuck had such a big effect on him even though they were 5,000 miles apart. 

“Well, I just wanted to say congratulations on the release, and good luck at the show this weekend,” Mark automatically brought a hand up to his mouth, biting at his nails. It was a nasty habit that only showed up when Mark was stressed or nervous. 

“Thanks, Mark. Good luck on your shoot today. Also, I miss you,” Donghyuck sped through the last few words, spitting them out so fast Mark could barely catch them. Mark grinned, he was cute. 

“I miss you too, Donghyuck. Tell everyone hi for me, and that I miss them too.”

Mark could imagine Donghyuck’s red face. “I will, Mark. You should go ahead and get on with your day. I’ll text you later, okay?”

Mark agreed. “Bye, Donghyuckie. Miss you.”

“Bye, Mark. Miss you too,” Mark could practically hear the smile in Donghyuck’s words. He hoped the younger liked the nickname.

Mark sighed and tossed the phone next to him on the bed. There was a pain in Mark’s heart that he had never felt before, it was new and intense. Suddenly, there was nothing Mark wanted more than to take the first flight back to Seoul, to see Donghyuck and his friends.

But he was here in Canada, watching them from afar. Mark would take what he could get. He would enjoy his time here before going back home to support his friends as much as he could.

Besides, he was elated for his shoot later today. This was what he had been waiting for during the entirety of his career, right? 

 

*

 

The eighth day of Mark’s Canada trip was when it became too much. He missed his friends, he missed the loud nightlife of Seoul, he missed Donghyuck. Canada was great, but he was awfully lonely here. He had made a few friends, but none as close as his friends back home.

He was just a little boy in a big country that was once his home. Now, it was nothing more than a bank of memories, where he would go to borrow happiness even if it was only for a few hours. 

The shoot had been everything he wanted and more, but when the company had asked if he wanted to extend his trip for another few days, he had politely declined. He had made a few new contacts on this trip anyways, and he was already booked for a few more shoots later in the year. 

So he wanted nothing more than to be home back with his friends when he opened his laptop to see all his friends gathered around Jeno’s laptop.

“Hey, guys,” Mark smiled, pulling his blanket tighter around him as he watched his friends start yelling as they saw him. Sure, it was 3 am in Vancouver, and Mark’s eyes were falling shut every few seconds, but he was joyful to see his friends. 

“Mark! You look so tired. Should we call you later?” Jeno asked, eyebrows furrowing in concern, clearly conveyed even through the laptop’s less-than-good-quality camera. 

“No,” Mark waved it off before letting out another yawn, “No, I’m fine. I’ll sleep on the flight anyway. Are you guys excited for the show tomorrow?” 

The various boys started chattering again, exclamations of happiness and some groans making their way back to Mark. Mark was excited to watch the highly awaited fashion show. 

It was one thing to take photos of the models, it was another to actually witness them doing their thing. Mark had only ever been to one other fashion show, and that had been when Jeno had first started modeling, straight out of university, so neither of them had much of a mental capacity to really appreciate what was going on. Besides, there was someone else Mark was excited to see on the runway for the first time. 

“I’m so excited, Mark hyung, you don’t even know,” Chenle chattered away, explaining how he and Jisung had been so nervous the whole day, the two of them had forgotten that the show wasn’t even today, and continued on to inform him how they had done sheet masks all day long and eaten chocolate for good luck. 

“Well, remember to take care of yourselves, alright? Just because I’m not there doesn’t mean I’m gonna stop reminding you to eat and get enough rest,” Mark sent them a strangely paternal look, Renjun and Jaemin giggling at Jisung and Chenle, who looked down and nodded sheepishly.

“How are you guys doing?” Mark asked Renjun, who was seated on the bed, Jaemin in his lap, with Jeno’s hand intertwined with Renjun’s. Mark could tell all was well when Jaemin sent the most starry-eyed gaze to Jeno and then mirrored it at Renjun. 

“Amazing,” Renjun breathed, not breathing eye contact with Jaemin, the latter’s face getting brighter in color. 

Mark nearly gagged and regretted asking the question. It was clear how everything was going. Still, there was a warm feeling in his stomach as he watched them. “Moving on,” he squeaked, averting his eyes as Renjun finally broke the gaze. 

“Aren’t you wondering where Hyuck is?” Jaemin piped up, a glint in his eyes.

“Yeah, where is he?” Mark had noticed that Donghyuck wasn’t present, but he had just chalked it up to him being busy or maybe he just didn’t want to talk to Mark. 

He had told Mark that he got stressed before shows so Mark didn’t want to push him to talk.

Jaemin smirked and pulled Renjun closer to him. “He went out to buy you a present. Don’t tell him I told you. But it was so cute, I had to tell you. He was so beat up about that fact that you weren’t enjoying your time in Canada, so he went to get you a present for when you get home.”

The grin on Jaemin’s face was best described as shit-eating, and Mark’s face warmed up, his lips quirking up as he imagined Donghyuck looking for a present for him.

Jeno pulled Jaemin closer to him, signaling for him to stop spoiling the surprise, and Mark pouted. “When’s he getting back? I wanna talk to him.”

Renjun made a face of distaste, “He’s been gone for a while, so he should be back pretty soon. Anyways, when he gets back, we’re all leaving. None of us want to hear you gush about how pretty Hyuck is and how much you miss him.”

The other four boys nodded their heads in affirmation, making various disgruntled noises. 

“I do not do that!” Mark protested, and at the four boys’ incredulous expression, “We’re no worse than you and Jeno and Jaemin,” Mark tried, but Renjun had moved on, talking animatedly about how he thought an alien had moved a bottle from his bed to the floor. 

Jaemin was listening intently, while Jeno was making comments about how inaccurate his story was. Jisung’s eyes were wide with wonder, clearly believing every word that spilled from Renjun’s mouth, and Chenle was rolling his eyes, poking Renjun’s side and trying to interrupt him every few seconds. 

Mark zoned out, watching his friends all gathered around the small laptop screen. Mark wanted to travel the world and take photos of what really mattered to him, but he didn’t want to be apart from his friends for that long. Clearly, he wasn’t doing too well with the concept, as it had only been about two weeks that he had been away from his friends. He knew that he was very friend and family oriented, he liked having his friends close to him. 

Now, watching his friends enjoy their time with him, he wanted, even more, to go and be with them, so he knew that he had to make a decision.    
He could choose to stay in Seoul, taking small jobs or staying as a special event and model photographer, or he could accept the offer he had received and branch out, traveling the world and gaining experience. The only downside would be that he would be leaving his friends and family. Mark sighed, the decision seemed near impossible. 

“Mark,” Jaemin sing-songed, “Your boyfriend is back!”

Mark looked back at the screen, blinking a few times as he lowered the brightness on his screen. Donghyuck was indeed back, he was setting a few bags down in the back. He walked over to the laptop, face brightening as he caught glance of the older boy, a smile breaking out on his face. 

“Hey, Mark,” he said happily, taking a seat on the floor right in front of the table with the laptop. From this angle, Mark had the best view, most of the screen was taken up by Donghyuck’s face, slightly red and as cute as ever. 

“Hey, Hyuck,” Mark couldn’t stop the sickly sweet tone he had used. It had been almost four days since they had heard each other’s voice, getting by through texts as both boys’ schedules filled up to the brim. 

Renjun and Jisung fake gagged, standing and pulling the rest with them, into Jeno’s room and slamming the door behind them as Chenle yelled, “Don’t say or do anything I wouldn’t!”

Donghyuck giggled as he watched the other boys leave, before turning his attention back to Mark. “I miss you.”

“I miss you too. But there are only a few days till I’m coming home. Hang in there, Hyuck,” Mark leaned forward, lifting a hand to gently trace the side of the younger boy’s face through the screen. Seeing Donghyuck on video only enhanced the ache to be near him, though Mark was the one comforting Donghyuck.

Donghyuck sighed but let out a soft smile. “I’m excited for the show tomorrow, though! I wish you were here. But it’s okay because you’ll be here for the rest.”

Mark nodded, “Wouldn’t miss it for the world.”

“I was thinking, and I think we should do another shoot. Did you realize that we’ve never done an individual shoot where we actually got along? Out of the four shoots we’ve done together, we hated each other for almost all of them,” Donghyuck suggested, looking a little unsure. 

“That’s a good idea,” Mark thought about it. “I can’t believe we argued during every shoot, they would’ve been so much more fun if we actually got along.”

Donghyuck chuckled, “I think they were interesting.”

“Yeah? Then this one will be even more interesting,” Mark said, more flirty than he had intended, gauging Hyuck’s reaction. The younger boy’s cheeks had flushed pink, and he looked down, surveying his hands. 

“Hyuck,” Mark started.

“I love you, Mark,” Donghyuck’s eyes snapped back up to the older. 

Mark froze, the words he was about to say escaping his head. He felt hyper-aware of his own feelings and surroundings, zoning in on the way that Donghyuck’s eyes widened a fraction like he hadn’t meant to blurt it out so suddenly. The already present flush on the boy’s cheeks darkened, and Mark found himself wanting to kiss the splotches of color on his sun-tanned skin. 

A little breath left Mark’s lips as he processed those words. He couldn’t believe that Donghyuck  _ loved _ him. 

Then, without breaking eye contact with the younger, he uttered the magic words back to the model. “I love you too, Donghyuck. So much.”

Donghyuck’s eyes widened even more as he had never expected Mark to say it in return, and it took everything Mark had in him to not caress the screen, just to feel closer to Hyuck.

“Really?” came his soft voice, a hint of the insecurity Mark knew the younger had done his best to bury deep inside of him. 

Mark nodded firmly. He wouldn’t let Donghyuck doubt Mark about his love for him. Not on this. “I’ll show you just how much I love you when I get back.”

Donghyuck beamed brightly, looking even more like a god than he already did. In the fading lights, Donghyuck looked bright and bold. 

“Say it again,” Donghyuck demanded, a pout forming on his lips. 

“I love you, Donghyuckie,” Mark drew out the younger’s name, loving the way Donghyuck grinned, as if Mark had brightened his whole world. Mark thought it was quite the opposite, Donghyuck had brightened Mark’s whole world, shifting his perspectives on things Mark had never had second thoughts about before. 

“I want you back home now,” Donghyuck whined, resting his head on his arms.

“Only a few more days. We’ll get through this, Sunshine.”

Donghyuck blushed at the nickname and hid his shy smile behind his hands. Mark insisted that the younger tell him his feelings again, just to hear the sweet words falling from Donghyuck’s lips, soft and melodic, making Mark’s heart sing in the perfect rhythm. 

 

*

 

_ “Mark, you’re in Korea now, right?”  _

_ “Mark! Don’t worry too much, have a safe flight, but call me as soon as you get to the airport.” _

_ “Mark Lee, how’s it going? Just leaving a message telling you to ignore the first two that Jeno and Jaemin sent, just ignore those. Have a safe flight home, we miss you!” _

 

Mark’s eyebrows furrowed as he stared down at his phone, listening to the various voicemails left during the ten hour flight. As he got through the voicemails and went to his texts, the bad feeling in Mark’s stomach intensified, making him very nervous and uneasy. He rushed through customs and headed for the baggage claim, calling Renjun as he dodged other people as he ran. 

“Renjun? Hey, what’s going on?” Mark’s voice sounded panicked to his own ears, but he couldn’t bring himself to calm down, not when he had no idea what was going on aside from the nauseous feeling in his stomach.

Renjun groaned. “I fucking told Jeno and Jaemin not to call you and worry you. Calm down, Mark. Just-just go home and rest for now. I’ll call you in a few hours.”

Renjun hung up and Mark just stared at the black screen of his phone. There was something really wrong, and Mark needed to know. 

 

The ride to his apartment was spent texting Jeno and Jaemin questions about what had happened, and all he received were dry answers that clearly told Mark that Renjun had told his two boyfriends to keep something from Mark. 

Mark dialed Donghyuck’s number and waited, hearing the rings go through. He never picked up. That was odd. Donghyuck had been so excited for Mark to come home, and honestly, it was odd that he hadn’t left any texts for Mark to read when he had landed.

He pursed his lips but tried Jisung and Chenle, only to receive the same ominous answer, “Don’t worry, just get some rest.”

Mark ran a desperate hand through his hair. What if something had happened to Donghyuck? He tried not to overthink, insisting that maybe Donghyuck was just exhausted from the fashion show. 

Once he got to his apartment, he took a seat on his couch, haphazardly tossing his shoes off. He called Renjun again, the sinking feeling intensifying once again.    
“Renjun, please tell me what’s going on,” Mark’s voice was so helpless, so small, like he already had an inkling of what was going on. 

“Mark, you’re exhausted. Get some rest and we can talk later,” Renjun said reasonably, patiently, but Mark was too far gone. 

“I can’t get rest, Renjun! Not when I don’t know what’s happening! I know something happened to Hyuck. He didn’t pick up my calls or reply to my texts and I have this horrible feeling in my stomach, and I’m freaking out! Just  _ tell _ me, Renjun. I need to know,” Mark was breathing hard at this point, a sheen of sweat growing on his forehead as he awaited Renjun’s explanation. 

The other end of the line was silent, though the silence was deafening. The ringing in Mark’s head got louder, pressing against his head as he brought a hand up to his mouth, nervously biting at his nails. 

“Fuck,” Renjun breathed. “Okay, are you sitting down? Promise me that you won’t come running. You both need rest.”

“Okay, okay, whatever. Just tell me,” Mark sat up on the couch, taking a shaky breath in. 

“Donghyuck, he’s-well, right now, uh,” he paused, took a deep breath and blurted, “Donghyuck hasn’t been eating well over the last few days and he passed out after the fashion show.”

Mark’s stomach sank. 

He felt like throwing up. 

He felt a headache coming on from his exhaustion.

“What?”

He was already standing, grabbing his keys and wallet, jamming his feet back into the shoes he had taken off a few moments ago. “What hospital is he at? He’s at the hospital, right? Please don’t tell me the company made him stay there.”

“Yeah, he’s at the hospital, but Mark, are you sure you should be coming here right now?” Renjun was worried, for the both of them, but Mark couldn’t bring himself to listen to Renjun’s reasons on why he should stay home. 

“I’m sure, Renjun. Are you there with him?”

“Yeah, we all are.”

“I’ll be there in twenty minutes, tops.”

 

*

 

Mark knocked gently on the door before opening it, pushing through to see his friends gathered around the small bed, the chatter dying down as they noticed Mark, complete with dark bags and ruffled hair, looking almost worse than Donghyuck. 

Mark’s eyes went straight to Donghyuck’s, the younger boy watching him back. He seemed to be alright for the most part; he was paler than usual, looked weak and tired, but he was in one piece.

“Fuck, I was so worried,” Mark sagged against the doorway, a rush of tears springing to his eyes as he let out a relieved sigh. 

Though Renjun had done his best to console Mark, he hadn’t believed him until he saw Donghyuck through his own two eyes. Donghyuck smiled softly at him, tiredly, as he patted the spot on the bed next to him. Mark stayed still, his eyes still wandering over Donghyuck, making sure that everything was indeed in place and alright. 

“I told you you had nothing to be worried about,” Renjun rolled his eyes, but his eyes were red and swollen too. 

“Come on, Chenle, Jisung. Let’s get something to eat? We should get some lunch,” Jeno ushered the younger boys out, pulling Jaemin and Renjun out with him. 

The door shut behind Mark with a soft slam and the older brought a hand up to swipe at his eyes. They were still slightly wet and they were tired, but he pushed through and made his way over to Donghyuck. 

The younger boy had an IV in, and was dressed in a hospital gown. He looked more tired than anything, and Mark winced; he hadn’t realized that Hyuck had been so stressed. 

“I’m okay, Mark. Can you give me a hug, though?” Hyuck pouted and opened his arms, gesturing for Mark to come embrace him. 

Mark sighed but made his way over, unable to keep the smile off his face. He was ecstatic to be back with Donghyuck. The past few weeks had only cemented his feelings, there was no way that Mark felt anything below love for the younger boy. 

Donghyuck buried his head in Mark’s neck, breathing him in. Mark’s hand came up to the back of Donghyuck’s head, gently running through Hyuck’s soft locks. 

When Donghyuck pulled back, Mark slipped his hand into Hyuck’s, squeezing tight. “Will you tell me what happened?”

The younger boy looked down and his free hand played with the strings of the hospital gown. He looked distressed but willing to talk.

“I’m gonna be honest with you, Mark.”

“That’s all I want, Donghyuck.”

“I haven’t been eating so much or taking care of myself properly. And not on purpose. I just, I was so preoccupied with the show and I wanted to look my best, so sometimes I’d eat less than I usually would. And I didn’t realize how tired I was until yesterday, after the show,” Donghyuck wouldn’t meet Mark’s eyes, and his chest ached. 

He really hadn’t thought that Donghyuck was feeling so bad, he had looked happy and healthy the last time they had video-chatted. It had been three days ago. Mark kicked himself mentally, he hadn’t even thought to make sure Donghyuck was eating well. 

“Donghyuck . . .” Mark trailed off, not quite knowing where to start. 

“I know I should’ve taken better care of myself because I feel horrible right now, but I was just so busy,” Donghyuck looked down helplessly at the IV in his arm, clearly feeling down about the situation.

“It’s okay, Sunshine. I’m not disappointed in you or anything. It hurts me to see you in this state, and I was so worried when Renjun told me that something was wrong, but I understand. You need to eat more, though, okay? I know models are supposed to be skinny and all, but you’re gorgeous just the way you are. I promise,” Mark lifted Donghyuck’s hand and pressed a soft kiss to the back, watching as Donghyuck shivered. 

“I just feel so much pressure to be a good model, and I’m not that skinny or really in shape, so I just wanted to be successful,” Donghyuck finally met Mark’s eyes, the younger’s shimmering with unshed tears. 

“You’re beautiful, Donghyuck. You’re perfect just the way you are. I love your face, and your body, and your personality. I love you so much, Hyuck,” Mark leaned over and kissed Donghyuck’s cheek, watching the boy get red under his touch. 

Donghyuck smiled, and Mark reciprocated the expression. Seeing Donghyuck smile still made his heart flutter, the boy was just  _ so pretty _ . Just then, Donghyuck’s stomach rumbled, making him blush even more than before. Mark had to laugh. He was so cute.

“How about I get you some food, okay? What are you feeling like today?” Mark chuckled and stood up, putting his coat back on. 

“Jjajangmyeon,” Donghyuck grinned, then tapped his lips expectantly. “Goodbye kiss?”

Mark almost cooed at the sight in front of him, then leaned down and slowly connected his lips with Donghyuck’s, his hands coming up to gently cradle his face. Donghyuck pulled him closer, conveniently making Mark fall on top of the younger. Mark steadied himself on his elbows and leaned back down. Mark’s heart was jittering all over the place, the younger’s warm touch both exciting him and calming him as their mouths moved together.

Donghyuck swiped a tongue along Mark’s lips, sliding his tongue in. Mark sighed, leaning even closer to Donghyuck, eliciting a soft moan from the younger.    
Donghyuck’s stomach rumbled again, longer and more intense. Wide-eyed, Mark pulled back, regaining his surroundings as he panted, watching the boy underneath him do the same. 

Mark laughed, throwing his head back and bringing a hand up to cover his mouth, his body shaking. “You’re really something, Lee Donghyuck.”

Donghyuck blushed and groaned, hiding his face behind his hands, “Stop making fun of me and bring me food, you ugly.”

Mark chuckled and ruffled the model’s hair affectionately, “There’s my Donghyuck. I was worried that something had happened to him, there was no way that he could go that long without trying to make fun of me.”

Donghyuck shoved him and stuck a tongue out at him playfully. Mark pressed another kiss to Donghyuck’s lips, “I’ll be back soon. Don’t miss me too much, Donghyuck-ah.”

 

Donghyuck could hear Mark’s laughs all the way down the hallway. He just turned and buried his head into the soft pillow, trying to hide his own sweet smile. 

 

*

 

“I think I wanna stop modeling,” Donghyuck said out of the blue a few days later, as the two were sat across from each other in the same coffee shop they had run into all those months ago. He had been quiet for most of the afternoon, not responding even when Mark smothered him in kisses, hoping to coax at least a small smile out of him. 

The younger boy had just stared out the window, his sketchbook left unattended as Mark worked on editing. 

“What?” Mark looked up abruptly from his laptop, brows furrowing as he watched the boy lift his cup of coffee to his mouth, not meeting Mark’s eyes. 

“I don’t wanna model anymore,” Donghyuck said simply, still staring out of the window. He didn’t look like he had just come to the revelation. It seemed like he had made up his mind a long while ago, and was just announcing it. 

“Why?” Mark asked, trying to get Donghyuck to at least look him in the eyes.    
Donghyuck just shrugged, unattached, his face displaying no emotion. He had clearly already come to terms with his decision.

“It’s just not what I want to do. It makes me feel horrible about myself, and I don’t know if it’s because I’m part of such a big company, or just because I don’t enjoy modeling anymore, but either way, I just don’t want to do it anymore.”

“Okay,” Mark reached out, grabbing Donghyuck’s hand, giving him a supportive smile. 

“Okay?” he glanced at Mark, clearly unsettled.    


“Okay. If you don’t want to model, that’s fine. I think it’s good that you’re figuring yourself out and what you really want to do. I’m happy for you,” Mark grinned, rubbing his thumb along the back of Hyuck’s hand.

Donghyuck let out a sigh of relief, sagging back into his seat again, taking a bite of the chocolate chip cookie sitting next to him. “You’re not like, disappointed in me or anything, right?”

Mark shook his head fervently. “Of course not, Donghyuck. I’m glad that you’re doing what’s best for yourself. Do you think you’ll start designing clothes now?”

He nodded, a smile gradually spreading across his face. “I really want to. I have so many ideas! Maybe I could even partner with NCT if they think my designs are good enough.”

“I’m sure they’ll love them, Hyuck,” Mark reassured, “Your designs are amazing.”

Donghyuck flushed a little, kicking Mark’s feet under the table. “Stop being so cute. You’re gonna give me a heart attack one day.”

Mark just smiled pridefully, loving the reactions he could elicit from Donghyuck. He leaned forward, resting his chin on his hands, blatantly admiring the younger. “Will you show me some of your designs?”

Mark had never actually seen inside Donghyuck’s sketchbook, the same way that no one had seen Mark’s little grey notebook that was full to the brim with lyrics. Those were private thoughts and ideas, and it took a whole lot of courage to show them to someone. Which was why it always amazed Mark just how ready Donghyuck was to share his work publically, as a career. 

Donghyuck flushed red again, awkwardly pulling his sketchbook closer to him, and out of Mark’s reach. 

Mark’s mouth dropped open in fake shock. “Seriously, Hyuck? You’d show random people your designs but not me, your very own boyfriend?”

He pouted, widened his eyes, and looked up at Donghyuck through his eyelashes. He leaned forward, resting his chin on his folded arms on the table, watching Donghyuck send him a weak look. 

“Pleeeeease, Hyuck?” Mark whined, trying to act cute the way Donghyuck did when he tried to convince Mark to stay in bed with him instead of getting up and actually doing work. Mark didn’t push too hard, making sure that Hyuck knew that he didn’t have to show them to him. Mark only wanted to see his designs if Donghyuck wanted him to see them.  

“Fuck you, Mark Lee. Fine, you can see one,” Donghyuck gave in, loosening his grip on the sketchbook just enough for Mark to lean forward and eagerly pull it out of his hands, pausing for just enough time for Donghyuck to be able to move it out of Mark’s reach if he wanted. 

Donghyuck just groaned and covered his pretty pink face with his hands, leaving small slots for him to observe Mark’s reaction through. 

Donghyuck’s sketchbook had many pages flagged by post-it notes, and one ribbon bookmark, Mark noticed. Mark touched the bookmark and as he flipped open to that specific page, Donghyuck groaned again, mumbling something under his breath as he set his head down on the table with a loud bang. Mark looked up before looking at the page, mildly alarmed at the fact that Donghyuck was so against Mark looking through the sketchbook. 

“Donghyuck, if you don’t want me to look in here, that’s fine, I can always wait until you’re ready, I don’t-”

“Just do it, it’s fine. I’m fine,” Donghyuck said, voice muffled from the table. He raised a weak hand, gesturing for Mark to continue.

Mark paused for another second, making sure Donghyuck was really okay with it before he resumed opening the thick, leather-bound sketchbook that Donghyuck had covered with various stickers and sharpie doodles. 

As he flipped to the bookmarked page first, all he could register was that the model Donghyuck had drawn looked vaguely like him. Or maybe he was thinking too much into it, but it resembled Mark a whole lot. The page was beautiful, the model was wearing a black t-shirt layered over a white long sleeved top, with various belts and buckles and harnesses crossing his body. He was dressed in a pair of black ripped skinny jeans, the jeans hastily colored in, with rough strokes.

He breathed out, looking up at the younger boy, who had lifted his head up but still had his face covered by his hands. 

“You didn’t even look at an outfit I designed,” Donghyuck mumbled, his face cherry red again. 

“It’s a pretty drawing, Donghyuck. You’re so talented,” Mark said sincerely, reaching out to flip the page. “It’s me, right?”

Donghyuck groaned again, nodding in embarrassment as he looked away from Mark. “I did that one when you were gone. It was one of the outfits that I modeled, but I couldn’t stop thinking about what you would look like in it, so I just sketched it.”

This time Mark flushed pink, feeling his cheeks heat up as a wave of affection overcame him. “You definitely rocked it better than I ever could,” Mark thought of the photos he had seen of the show. Donghyuck had looked badass and breathtaking all mixed in one, his hair dyed light brown with rainbow streaks just to stand out against the pieces he had modeled. 

Donghyuck smiled shyly as Mark looked at the next page. It was of a pretty gown, periwinkle and shimmery. Mark thought any girl would be lucky to wear such a beautiful dress.    
“Are there any more of me?” Mark asked after flipping through a few other designs, making sure to tell Donghyuck profusely how amazing his designs were. 

Donghyuck nodded, overcoming the embarrassment he had been feeling. “Yeah, all the bookmarked pages are of you.”

Mark paused and looked up, eyes widened as he stared at Donghyuck. “Really? Why did you draw me so much?”

“You’re so handsome. And you’d look gorgeous in all my designs.” Donghyuck fiddled with his hands, looking at the floor then meeting Mark’s eyes again. As red as his face was, and as awkward as he was acting, his eyes were strangely clear. Mark could see the slight shimmer in them, and he waited for Hyuck’s next words. 

“Whenever I design anything, I picture you in it and design it based off of that. So you’re kinda like my own personal model.”

The air knocked out of Mark’s lungs. He was sure his jaw had dropped, and he was just so full of emotion, full of  _ love _ , for the younger. He couldn’t believe that Donghyuck had deemed him worthy to be in his sketchbook, let alone be a source of inspiration for him. 

“Why do you look so shocked? Of course you’d be in my sketchbook,” Donghyuck smirked at the look on Mark’s face. 

“Shut up,” Mark mumbled, rubbing a hand down his face. “Seriously, you’re the one who’s gonna give me a heart attack one day. You always find a way to surprise me.”

Donghyuck laughed, the sound tinkly and melodically making its way to Mark’s ear, furthering the immense affection he had towards the younger.

Mark cracked a smile of his own before looking back down at the sketchbook, flipping through the different pages Donghyuck had noted with various colored sticky notes. 

There were so many outfits Donghyuck had drawn him in; everything from simple jeans and a t-shirt, all the way to formal tuxedos, and everything in between. There were little doodles on those pages as well, and they brought a type of comfort to Mark. He could tell that these were done more for fun and less as actual work. Out of all the outfits Donghyuck had drawn him in, though, his absolute favorite was the page where Donghyuck had drawn Mark on the day that they had gone out, the day of their first kiss. He had been wearing a white t-shirt and a jean jacket layered on top, with ripped black jeans, which Donghyuck had drawn and put his own twist to, adding a pattern of flowers down the right leg of the jeans. 

Mark examined every sketch, knowing how hard Donghyuck worked on his designs. If this was the way Donghyuck thought of him when seeing his photos,  Mark was honored. He felt pride bloom in his chest, spreading quickly as he traced his hand over Hyuck’s pencil marks. Each sketch was flawless and his designs were gorgeous.

“This is so good, Hyuck. I’m so proud of you,” Mark finally said, after shutting the sketchbook and pushing it back towards the younger. 

“Hold on,” the younger said and grabbed his phone. Mark paused, looking at the younger in confusion. “Okay, smile for me!”

Donghyuck held up his phone where he was presumably taking a photo of Mark. 

“What?” Mark smiled anyway, throwing up a peace sign. After Donghyuck had taken countless photos, his face scrunched up in a smile as Mark pretended to be a model, making different faces and poses for each photo. 

“Okay, perfect,” Donghyuck inspected the photos, zooming in and giggling at the silly faces the older boy had made to make him laugh. “I just wanted some reference photos, and you were looking super good right there.”

Once again, Mark felt that same pressure in his chest, the overwhelming affection and fondness growing like a flower receiving sunlight directly from the sun itself. He couldn’t stifle the smile that forced its way onto his face as he reached out and grabbed Donghyuck’s hand under the table.

“Before you stop modeling for good, we’re still gonna have that photoshoot, right? Because I have so many good ideas,” Mark gushed, going on about the different locations and outfits he’d want to see Donghyuck in, playing the role of photographer and boyfriend all rolled into one.

This time Donghyuck sat back, watching his boyfriend geek out about what he loved. He was so lucky to have Mark, to have someone so supportive and understanding and reasonable on his side. “Yeah. I’m so excited for that shoot.”

Mark launched back into another tirade of lighting he wanted to try out, and Donghyuck zoned out, focusing on the calming lull of Mark’s sweet voice, watching him gesture animatedly with his hands flying everywhere, a small smile permanently on the older’s face as he talked. Donghyuck was so grateful for him. And he was beyond excited for the photoshoot that Mark was having so much fun planning the details for. 

So Donghyuck focused on Mark again, trying his best to work around the technical jargon that Mark was using, just watching him talk about what he loved to do while enjoying his warm cup of coffee. 

 

*

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> we are almost to the last chapter!! i hope you liked this one!! leave a comment and follow me on twt @ honeyshyuck if you'd like!! thank u for reading & have a good day!!<3


	7. chapter seven

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> mark and donghyuck figure life out together!

“So I just want to make sure about something,” Mark looked ahead at the wall in front of him, avoiding the curious gaze of the boy’s head that was currently resting in his lap. 

“What?” Donghyuck asked, taking Mark’s hand from where it was laying on the younger’s chest and interlacing his fingers with Mark’s.

“We’re not . . . like, breaking up, are we?” Mark asked quietly, insistent on avoiding Donghyuck’s eyes. 

Half of him was mad at himself for asking such a stupid question, but the other, more insecure half was raging big, painting all of Mark’s confidence black and planting the seeds of insecurities in his mind. 

Donghyuck sat up straight so fast he knocked his head against Mark’s chin. He muttered an expletive before turning to face Mark, reaching out and turning Mark’s face gently towards his own. 

“Why would we be breaking up?” Donghyuck questioned softly, confusion as well as something else close to hurt evident in his expression. 

Mark ran a hand through his hair, before rubbing the back of his neck nervously, trying to break eye contact with the younger. He didn’t exactly know why he was asking this, just that he had awoken in the middle of the night with the strongest feeling that Donghyuck wanted to break up with him, and the insecure half of his brain had convinced the logical side that Donghyuck didn’t want him.. 

“I don’t know. I just, you’re quitting modeling . . . so, I don’t know. Maybe you also need a break from me because I know I can get overbearing and you might want some time and space for yourself while you figure out what you want for yourself,” Mark explained, his hands playing with the strings on his sweatshirt, as his gaze fell to the floor, a sinking feeling prominent in his stomach as Donghyuck stayed silent.

God, why did he have to open his mouth? Even if Donghyuck hadn’t been thinking about breaking up, he definitely was now. He was too quiet for it to be anything other than true. It was true, they were breaking up and Mark would never get the chance to kiss him again, or tell him how pretty his natural black hair was. Or how-

Mark felt a hand on his thigh, and he whipped his head up to see Donghyuck watching him, an affectionate look on his face. Donghyuck’s touch sent shivers through Mark, and goosebumps arose on his skin, as Donghyuck shook his head and scoffed slightly. 

“Seriously, you’re always thinking the weirdest things ever. Where do you even get these things from? Why would I want to break up with you, you goof? You might be overbearing, but it’s so endearing I can’t even get annoyed. And I already know what I want: you, my friends, and a designing job. No need to take a break,” Donghyuck leaned forward, close enough that their foreheads were touching, noses just barely brushing. 

Donghyuck’s eyes were much prettier up close. Not that they weren’t usually pretty. The light and dark hues of brown all swirled around together, creating a vortex of warmth. Mark swore Donghyuck could stare straight into his soul when he looked at him like that. 

“Really?” Mark breathed dumbly, his eyes focusing on the younger’s lips. 

Donghyuck made a sound of affirmation before kissing Mark, their lips moving together as Donghyuck conveyed exactly how much he didn’t want to break up with Mark. 

When they broke apart, both boys breathing just a bit heavier than usual, Mark pressed their foreheads back together. 

“Really,” Donghyuck confirmed.

He giggled a little before reaching up to flick Mark’s cheek. Mark pouted and kissed the younger again. 

When they sat back, their hands were tightly intertwined and Mark’s head was laying on Donghyuck’s shoulder, the younger’s focus back on the TV.

It was comfortable, the way Mark and Donghyuck were around each other. It felt like home, something Mark had had trouble finding for years on end. But here, sat in the warmth of each other, doing domestic things together, made Mark feel like he belonged, like he had a home in Donghyuck.

 

*

 

“I feel nervous for some reason,” Donghyuck adjusted his outfit again, straightening his shirt and checking that his hair was still in place. 

“Don’t be, it’s gonna be fun,” Mark assured, looking up from his camera as he got situated. 

“It’s so pretty out here. I wish I could live here. How cool would it be to live on top of a mountain and getting to see this view every morning?” Donghyuck spread his arms out, the light wind tousling Donghyuck’s hair, freshly dyed dark brown. 

Mark chuckled, though he had to admit that the view was unbeatable from up here. It was the perfect spot for a photoshoot of someone who could rival the sun’s brightness. The sunrise was stunning, arrays of pinks and orange taking over the normally blue sky. The colors were more vibrant up here and paired with the light dusting of snow that littered the grass, the sky popped out even more. “You would hate living up here.”

Donghyuck shrugged, “Yeah, but a boy can dream, right? It’d be a nice vacation place anyway. Imagine bringing Renjun, Jaemin, and Jeno up here. We would lose Jisung and Chenle in a heartbeat.”

Mark laughed then nodded. “We should do a little getaway thing. It’d be fun, with everyone up here.”

 

“Hyung, get one of me up here!” Donghyuck shouted down, watching Mark roll his eyes as he located the younger. 

Donghyuck had found a small hill overlooking the city, and with the sunrise in the background, Mark could get some pretty artsy shots the way Donghyuck liked for all his social media posts. 

They had spent the last hour trekking around the mountain, looking for any possible places that Donghyuck deemed ‘cute enough’ to shoot in. 

“Okay, my turn!” Donghyuck hopped up and reached out to Mark, a slightly wicked glint in his eyes. 

“Your turn for what?” Mark pretended to not know what Donghyuck meant, softly cradling his camera closer to his body, not wanting to take chances with the younger.

“Hyung,” Donghyuck whined, making grabby hands at him. “Please? You look too cute today to not let me take photos of you too. I won’t break your camera, promise. I’ll be super careful.”

Donghyuck looked so earnest, so eager to do this, so Mark relented, sighing before taking off the neck strap and passing the camera carefully over to the younger.

“Make sure you support the lens with your hand, okay?” Mark backed up, trying not to wince at how inexperienced Donghyuck clearly was with his camera.

Donghyuck grinned and pointed to a tree behind them. “Get up there.”

Mark did a double take, eyes flashing from the tall, withering tree to his boyfriend, looking at him like he was crazy. “What?”

“It’ll be a good picture. And I wanna show off my photography to the world. You have to post this on instagram and give  _ me _ photo credits, instead of the other way around.”

Mark laughed, the sound filling the morning silence. Donghyuck was precious. “Okay, I’ll do it. But if I fall and break my arm, you’re gonna pay the medical bills.”

“Just don’t fall then,” Donghyuck stuck his tongue out at the younger, giggling when he rolled his eyes at him. 

Donghyuck carefully adjusted the viewfinder, bringing the camera up to his eyes. He instructed Mark to do a sexy pose, to which Mark just straightened his face and tilted it to the side, adding a little pout. Donghyuck thought that Mark looked more cute than hot, but he took the photo anyway. Mark looked adorable with each different pose he did, throwing up a cute peace sign, or jokingly puckering his lips at Donghyuck, or even hanging off the branch upside down for the last one, sticking his tongue out when Donghyuck laughed at him. 

“That last one is going on my instagram. You look so stupid in this one,” Donghyuck giggled and pulled his phone out to take a photo of the camera’s screen. 

“Hey, hey, hey. No way. I only agreed to this because they were for you. Not for your 7 million followers,” Mark protested, frantically trying to get down from the tree before the younger boy could capture all of the embarrassing photos Mark had just let him take. 

Donghyuck just giggled, turning away from the tree as he went through the camera, looking for any other memorable photos. 

“Donghyuck,” Mark whined, still trying to get to the floor. His shirt had caught on to a branch in his haste to get down, and he was furiously trying to get his shirt unstuck. 

“Mark,” Donghyuck reciprocated, whining in the exact same tone, except his was lighter as he laughed at what must have been another funny photo. 

Mark finally pulled his shirt free and jumped down, landing in a heap on the floor. He let out a little groan of pain before he stood back up. He approached Donghyuck quietly, trying to grab the camera out of the younger’s hands before he could get more blackmail on him.

Donghyuck turned at the last moment, as Mark had started to stretch his hands out to the camera. His eyes widened, before he took off, clutching the camera as well as his phone tightly close to his body.

“Hyuck!” Mark groaned before taking off after him, his shoes crunching in the snow, the feeling exhilarating as he sprinted through the cold air, the wind winding along his body, sending a chill through him. “You and I both know I’m gonna catch up with you!”

Donghyuck’s response was speeding up and yelling insults at him, his laughs ringing loud and clear through Mark’s head, filling him up to the brim with unfiltered happiness. 

As he caught up with the younger boy, he reached an arm out to support his camera, before grabbing onto Donghyuck’s waist and pulling him onto the floor with him, the two of them landing with a hard thump. 

Donghyuck groaned, turning over as Mark turned towards him. The two of them had big smiles displayed on their faces, and they were breathing hard, and Mark knew that they were probably going to get sick since their heads were in the snow, but he couldn’t bring himself to care. 

Donghyuck leaned towards Mark and kissed him sweetly. It started out nice and slow, though as he deepened it, it became more deep and frantic, the younger tugging at Mark until he was hovering over the younger, using his arms for support, each elbow resting on either side of Donghyuck’s head.    
When they broke apart, Mark fell back against the ground next to Hyuck, feeling the cold from the snow seep into his hair. 

Once he caught his breath, he reached for the camera, on the other side of Donghyuck. He slid his arm around Donghyuck so it looked like he was cuddling the younger. He had almost grabbed it, until the boy next to him realized what he was going for, turning and sticking his fingers into Mark’s sides, tickling him. 

Mark fell back, choked laughs escaping his mouth as he squirmed around, trying to push Donghyuck’s hands away from him. 

“D-Donghyuck, Hyuckie, s-stop,” he managed through a fit of giggles, curling up as the younger mercilessly jammed his fingers in Mark’s sides.

“You tricked me, asshole,” Donghyuck pouted, though he couldn’t keep the giggled away either as he watched the older struggle. “I thought we were gonna cuddle under the pretty sunrise but you just wanted the camera.”

“I-I’ll make i-it up to . . . you,” Mark struggled to get out, giggles erupting with every word.   
“Yeah? And how exactly are you gonna do that?” Donghyuck smirked, easing up on the tickling the slightest bit, just enough that Mark could catch his breath. 

It was just enough for Mark, he pushed himself up, “Guess you’ll have to find out yourself, baby.”

Donghyuck’s fingers stilled as he looked at Mark, his face priceless. His cheeks were bright red, and his eyes were wide. It was Mark’s turn to smirk, then he was snatching the camera and he was off. 

“Mark! That is so unfair,” Donghyuck yelled weakly, and Mark laughed harder. Mark finally had the upper hand again, and he wasn’t about to let go of it.

Mark noted the fact that apparently, Donghyuck liked being called ‘baby’. Mark grinned as he continued to run, hearing the younger’s steps pound after him until they were rolling around in the snow again, puffs of air being huffed out from the both of them, sweet laughs escaping their mouths as they wrestled on the floor. 

 

“That was so fun,” Donghyuck warmed his hands over the small fire the two of them had barely managed to make because of the thin layer of snow on the ground. 

Mark shivered before moving closer to the younger boy. Both of them had gotten thoroughly soaked from rolling around on the floor, and they had stripped their wet coats off, leaving them in sweatshirts. 

Donghyuck wrapped the blanket tighter around their shoulders, and Mark encompassed Donghyuck’s hands with his own, rubbing them together, trying to sustain the little warmth they had between them.

“I’m glad you had fun,” Mark gently nudged Hyuck’s shoulder with his own, a soft smile taking over his face as he gazed at the younger, his damp hair plastered to his forehead. He leaned forward and kissed the younger’s temple, watching Donghyuck pull his bottom lip between his teeth, a pout forming on his lips. 

“What?” Mark asked. 

He shook his head. “It’s not fair,” he lightly punched Mark’s chest. “You don’t get to be all sweet like this.”

Mark pulled Hyuck closer to his side, throwing an arm around his shoulders, “What? You don’t like it when I kiss you? Or call you babe? Or cuddle you?”

Mark proceeded to do each thing, tugging Hyuck close and planting a kiss on the younger’s mouth, then his nose, then his forehead, pulling back to see Donghyuck’s face turning red. Donghyuck sighed but cuddled close to Mark, letting his head fall on Mark’s shoulder. 

“I love you, sunshine,” Mark whispered a few seconds later, letting his chin rest on Hyuck’s hair. 

“I love you too, angel,” Donghyuck mumbled back, his grip on Mark’s shirt tightening, making the older want to coo.

Donghyuck was so perfect. And Mark was so grateful to have him. Contrary to what high-school-Mark had thought of Donghyuck, the younger boy was a sweetheart and was one of the kindest people Mark knew. Even when the younger was teasing him mercilessly, Mark loved him. 

 

*

 

“Seriously, Mark, you should’ve taken that job. I promise I would’ve been fine here. You didn’t need to cancel for me,” Donghyuck sighed, leaning back on the couch next to Mark, who shot him an incredulous look. 

“And miss the first release of your  _ own _ designs? I wouldn’t miss this for the world. Besides, you know I’m going to France in a few weeks, and I want to spend time with you,” Mark wrapped an arm around Donghyuck, whose own hand had found a place on Mark’s knee, gently rubbing back and forth. 

“About France,” Donghyuck started sheepishly, and Mark looked at him expectantly. “My designs are scheduled to be in a show in Paris in three weeks.”

Mark was sure he was a sight to be seen. His jaw had dropped, and his eyes were probably as wide as saucers as he cocked his head, making sure he was hearing this right. 

“You mean like, three weeks from today? The same time I’m gonna be in Paris?” Mark couldn’t believe his ears.

Donghyuck was basically bouncing in his seat. He nodded, “Well, it’s the weekend after your shoot, but you can extend your trip for another week and we could spend the week together in Paris.”

Mark breathed out, his mind working at light speed as he realized what this meant. “Holy fuck, Donghyuck. That’s gonna be the fucking best week ever.”

The younger nodded, excitement shining in his eyes, the same mirrored in Mark’s own. He was sure they looked like a pair of five-year-olds who had just gotten money to go to the candy store. Except this was better. 

Donghyuck started jittering again, this time in nervousness as he checked the countdown on his phone. “We have two minutes till the release.”

Mark pulled Donghyuck’s hand, lacing it firmly with his own, watching Donghyuck’s small staff and their friends chatter excitedly around Donghyuck’s living room. 

Renjun, Jeno, and Jaemin had gone overboard with decorations; they had organized what they called a ‘release party’, complete with cake and balloons, and even party hats. Jisung and Chenle had bought food for everyone, so everyone was busy eating and laughing as they counted down the seconds to 10 AM. 

Donghyuck looked so nervous but so happy. He had been waiting for this day for so long, and Mark couldn’t be prouder. So, he counted down the seconds with Donghyuck, dressed in Donghyuck’s designs made custom for him. 

“Thirty seconds,” Donghyuck whispered, watching their friends all come closer until everyone was mostly seated around Donghyuck’s manager, a sweet man named Kun, who was almost as excited for this release as Hyuck himself, who was in charge of publishing Donghyuck’s designs. 

“Ten seconds,” Kun stated, a proud smile on his face as his finger wavered over the touchpad. 

The entire room started counting down, Mark unable to take his gaze off of his boyfriend, who was looking more nervous as each second passed.

“Three!”

Donghyuck’s grip on Mark’s hand tightened.

“Two!”

Mark told Donghyuck to take a deep breath. 

“One!”

Donghyuck jumped up as Kun pressed the publish button, watching the site go live.

“Congratulations!” everyone chorused, whoops and cheers erupting throughout the room. Donghyuck himself looked ecstatic as he hugged Kun, then Mark, then made his way to the cake, where Jisung and Chenle decided to smear frosting all over Donghyuck’s face. 

Hyuck groaned in distaste, though there was still an exuberant beam on his face.

 

Later, when the chaos had calmed, enough for people to gather back in smaller groups, food divided amongst themselves, Kun announced, “Donghyuck, everything’s sold. We’re out of stock.”

Donghyuck’s jaw really dropped to the floor, causing another wave of cheers and yells to go around, because, well, it had only been 25 minutes since the release. 

“Really?” Donghyuck couldn’t seem to believe it as his face flushed red.  

“Really,” Kun affirmed and picked up the laptop, showing the younger boy the total number of orders. 

Two of Donghyuck’s other staff members, really sweet designers, Jungwoo and Taeil, congratulated him, squeezing him tight. 

The three of them hugging really showed Mark how close he was to his partners and staff. They had really made Donghyuck’s dreams come true, and he was so happy for them. 

Donghyuck breathed out, eyes still wide open and unfocused. There were tears starting to glint in his eyes, and Renjun pulled him close.

“We’re so proud of you Donghyuck. I’m so happy you’re pursuing your dreams. You deserve this. I can’t wait to see you in Paris,” Renjun mumbled into Donghyuck’s shoulder. 

Jeno and Jaemin nodded, joining the hug eagerly, whispering their own words of pride and encouragement to the flustered boy. 

“Aw, hyung, it’s all sold out and I never got to buy the sweatshirt I wanted,” Chenle waved his phone, around, Donghyuck’s website up, where indeed, everything was sold out. 

Donghyuck laughed and pulled the boy close. “I’ll make sure you get the sweatshirt you want.”

“And me too, right hyung?” Jisung asked, giving him his best puppy dog eyes, to which Donghyuck had no option but to cave in. 

He nodded, gesturing for him to join the hug too. “Of course, Sungie.”

The six boys were wrapped tightly around each other, and Mark watched happily, all his best friends were perfect together, 

Mark knew that Donghyuck would miss modeling with the Dreamies, the same way that he would miss doing shoots for them. But they were moving on to things that they liked better, things that worked better for them, things that were closer to their dreams, and Mark smiled. He and Hyuck were unsure about a lot of things, but they were excited to try out new things and accept new opportunities. 

“Mark hyung, why are you just watching us?” Chenle asked, lifting his head from Jisung’s shoulder. 

Jisung nodded and motioned for him to join the hug. Mark felt a rush of affection for his friends, they really made him the happiest. He walked over, wrapping his arms around Donghyuck and Chenle, completing the hug. 

“Is it just me or does it confuse you too how Mark hyung and Hyuck hyung went from hating each other to loving each other?” Jisung commented later, as he stuffed a forkful of red velvet cake into his mouth. 

Chenle laughed and ruffled Jisung’s hair, to which the younger batted away his hand. “Love and hate have a very thin line separating them, and clearly they both crossed that line.”

Donghyuck rolled his eyes but clutched at Mark’s hand tighter, “Don’t come crying to me when the two of you realize your feelings.”

It was vague enough that they still needed to come to a conclusion by themselves, but both boys blushed, immediately moving a few inches apart, trying to put some space between them. 

“Shut up, hyung,” it was Chenle who mumbled, hiding his face in Renjun’s shoulder, who gently patted the back of the younger’s neck, a stark difference from the chokehold Renjun had him in only a few minutes ago. 

“Anyways,” Jeno raised his glass of champagne. “To Donghyuck and Mark chasing their dreams.”

“To Donghyuck and Mark chasing their dreams!” everyone chorused before clinking their glasses together.

Mark watched his boyfriend, all smiles and loud laughter as he conversed with his friends and staff. Donghyuck was really going somewhere, Mark knew. And hopefully, he was going somewhere as well. He was nervous but exhilarated. He was anticipating what was next for the two of them, united and beyond excited for their next experiences. 

 

_ END _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> we're finally done with this fic!! it took me a while to settle on this ending and i'm actually very satisfied with it!! sorry it took me so long to finally put this chapter up, but we're here and it's done!! i hope you've enjoyed reading, and if you'd like, leave a comment and follow me on twt @honeyshyuck !!!  
> have a good day!! xx

**Author's Note:**

> hello!!! i hope you liked this chapter!! i've already written the whole fic out, so look out for constant updates! i really had such a good time writing this, and it's the longest fic i've ever written. i think it'll be around 38k when its finished!! leave a comment down below if you'd like, and you can follow me on twt @ honeyshyuck !!<3
> 
> -ash xxx


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